Outsiders
by Little-Normandy
Summary: AU. Brittany is a new student who transfers to McKinley. She meet's Santana and the pair do not get along. Canon characterization mostly in tact.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Outsiders**

**Summary: AU. Brittany is a new student who transfers to McKinley. She meet's Santana and the pair don't get along.**

**Rating: M (language, drug use, inevitable smut lol)**

**A/N: I've never really written a Brittana fic before even though I've wanted to forever. It's AU (since canon Brittana at the moment sucks and is pretty much non-existent), but I've tried to keep the characterizations of all characters as close as possible to canon as the plot will allow. Enjoy! Any and all feedback is welcome, tell me if it's worth continuing this or not. I do not own Glee. Unfortunately.**

/

Brittany Pierce wasn't the smartest of girls, she knew that, but she excelled at topics that piqued her curiosity. For example she knew a hell of a lot about cats, birds, the theory of time travel in space-time and other stuff like unicorn mythology. She couldn't for the life of her tell you anything beyond basic mathematics though. She just wasn't conventionally smart like most people. People however, she was good at. All her life she had been popular with people be it family, friends, boys etc. Brittany guessed it was her non-threatening demeanor and general awesomeness that made people like her. And she liked people. People were nice. Usually.

She did have to put up with the weird looks she would occasionally get when she blurted out something before her brain could tell her that it probably sounded pretty dumb. At least she was honest. It was both a blessing and a curse, mostly a curse though as it put her in awkward social situations. Luckily for her she learned to breeze by or ignore the awkwardness from a young age. Most people laughed when she said things, sometimes even when she was being serious. Brittany didn't mind entirely though, she liked when people smiled at her. She liked making people laugh. It made her laugh.

"You ready for your first day then Brittany?" came a soft voice from behind her.

Brittany snapped out of her daze and turned to face another blonde, sporting the same cheerleading outfit and obligatory ponytail as she was. They were both standing outside staring at McKinley high school.

"Yup" she said bouncing on her feet. She then made a popping noise with her lips.

She was sort of nervous but mostly excited about starting at a new school. This was her last year, her senior year and she was determined to make it count – both in her studies and in her life. It was still summer and the cool breeze was a welcome sensation from the heat blaring from the sky's sun.

"You know, it's OK to be nervous, but you honestly have nothing to worry about" came the other blonde's voice, closer now since she came to stand beside Brittany and looked to her.

Brittany didn't know what to say so she just smiled back.

"Besides…" the other girl continued. "You're with me" she said simply, making a delicate hand gesture toward herself.

"Thanks Quinn, but I'm really not all that nervous, just super excited. But you're really pretty and have a nice voice and just like super nice so thanks for like letting me join cheerios and be like your friend and stuff" Brittany said awkwardly and quickly, scrunching her face up. She hoped she hadn't said too much or made a fool of herself. Quinn quirked an eyebrow in response.

"Keep telling me things like that and I think we'll be just fine" Quinn smiled back, placing a hand on Brittany's shoulder. She seemed amused. "We'd better get in though, I'll remind you where your locker is and walk you to your first class. Come" she said motioning toward the door entrance.

The hallways of McKinley were crammed full of students bustling to their classes or hanging around their lockers and throwing things at each other. At first glance people fell into the usual groups or archetypes, goths, jocks etc. none of it really mattered all that much to Brittany, sure first impressions are important, but she didn't like judging people on how they looked which she came to find out a lot of people her age tend to do, much to her disappointment.

She sure hit the jackpot with Quinn though. By chance, Brittany accidentally came to school a week early and it was still the summer break, calendars confused her sometimes. The cheerleading squad (or the "cheerios" as they are commonly referred to as) were out doing a routine, turns out their coach is pretty tough and still makes them work during the summer. She met the head cheerleader Quinn Fabray, Brittany gave an impromptu try-out performance and before she knew it she was accepted into the cheerios, and was the new friend of the most popular girl in school. Brittany had been popular at her old school back in Louisiana but she was still glad her new-found popularity had come unexpectedly and rather instantly here in Lima, Ohio. So much so, as her and Quinn walked down the corridor, people parted ways for them to move more freely, and some of her other fellow cheerios were already smiling at her and saying hello, some even knew her name. She smiled back at them all as Quinn and her neared their lockers. Brittany gave a contented sigh. This was going to be an awesome year. So she thought until…

Thud.

Another girl from behind them wedged themselves in-between Brittany and Quinn, slamming each shoulder roughly into their sides.

"Out of my way assholes" grunted the girl as she strode forward without a backwards glance and went to the locker situated beside her and Quinn's. Quinn rolled her eyes but went to the locker next to the other girl.

"Here Brittany, yours is next to mine" mumbled Quinn, suddenly sounding quiet and strangely withdrawn.

Brittany thought it odd for a girl so usually full of confidence. Well, Brittany had only known Quinn for a week but still she had never seen a more drastic shift. In all honesty though she was barley listening to her friend, she was too busy looking at the other girl that had rudely pushed by them both.

The girl was Latina and had gorgeous long dark hair that fell just below her shoulders. Brittany tilted her head to the side curiously; she certainly wasn't dressed like how most other students were. The girl was sporting knee high boots, an impossibly short black skirt that barley covered her thighs leaving nothing to the imagination, same could be said for her red top and tiny black leather jacket that hardly went past the girls boobs, it almost seemed silly to think it a jacket. The girl was kind of glamorous and therefore seemed oddly out of place next to most other students.

Brittany watched in slight amazement as the girl rummaged through her locker with one hand and ran her other through her hair impatiently and began fiddling with one of her large silver hoop earrings, her face coming into Brittany's view. Brittany held her breath as she took in the strangers olive skin, dark brown eyes, large plump lips and slight crease in her brow. This girl was attractive. Really attractive. Model like almost, Brittany wondered how she managed to meet two of the prettiest girls she had ever seen in her life within the space of one week, Quinn being the other. Brittany however wasn't prepared for what came next.

The girl unslung her backpack from her back and placed it on the floor in front of her. Brittany heard the clinking of glass come from within it. She frowned, and sure enough the Latina bent down and extracted a glass bottle. Jack Daniels. Brittany watched wide-eyed as the other girl downed a gulp straight, her face contorting as the alcohol likely hit the back of her throat. She took another whisk then put the cap back on, shaking her head and sighing seemingly in relief. She shoved the bottle back in her backpack and Brittany was sure she heard it clang with another bottle. The girl kneeled down and grabbed her backpack again swinging it back over her shoulders.

Brittany couldn't help notice how the muscles in the girls toned thighs contracted as she kneeled. Was this girl a cheerio? Brittany shook her head. That can't be it. She hasn't got a uniform on. Brittany felt like she had been staring forever.

"Hey _stretch marks_" The girl suddenly said to the inside of her locker. Her voice was warm and had a low gravely sound to it, sort of like Quinn's but more dark. The girl's tone however was laced with nothing but coldness.

Brittany frowned wondering who she was talking to, but then before she knew it, Quinn slowly spun around and spoke to the girl.

"I _told _you to stop calling me that Santana" hissed Quinn anxiously, eying students who were within earshot walking by.

Brittany chewed the inside of her mouth apprehensively, she had no idea what was happening and decided it was probably best if she kept quiet. This girls name was Santana. That was a pretty name she thought, Brittany had never heard or knew of a Santana before, except the singer.

Santana suddenly slammed her locker shut with force, the sound reverberating all around the corridor. Most people in the crowded hallway stopped and glanced their way to see where the noise came from. Once their eyes fell to Santana though they all seemed to divert their attention back to what they were doing, some even hurriedly scuttled away to their classes. Brittany raised her eyebrows. Did Santana strike fear into their hearts or something?

"Or what?" Santana said bluntly, raising an eyebrow.

"Or…or you know people will…" Quinn said looking around yet again, and leaned in closer "cotton on" she said, her voice a little lower.

"Not my problem" Santana said shrugging a shoulder.

"What did you want anyway?" asked Quinn, sounding impatient and annoyed. She looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but here right now.

"I was just going to ask if you could tell your friend to stop ogling me. Seriously, she's been staring at me for like the last 5 minutes and it's starting to freak me out a little" said Santana, her voice dripping with contempt.

Brittany's eyes if possible went wider as the realization hit her that Santana was talking about her. Before she could stop herself she…

"Oh! Sorry…hi, I'm Brittany" she smiled politely, extending her hand out to Santana.

Quinn actually smacked a hand against her own forehead and looked to the floor. Brittany already sensed she had made a mistake and by the look Santana was giving her she was now beginning to understand the fear that drove the other students away. Santana's eyes fell slowly to her outstretched hand and looked as if Brittany had offered her a diseased animal instead of a friendly handshake. Brittany withdrew her hand after a few awkward moments of silence, although Santana's judgmental glare said it all. Feeling the usual social awkwardness creep up in the air, Brittany did what she usually did to get rid of it – talk.

"I'm new here…I'm…I…uhm, I'm a cheerio" she stammered out. It was the only thing she could think of to say. She never had trouble with talking to people before, but she felt really nervous and intimated by this girl. Santana raised her eyebrows and stared at the uniform Brittany was wearing.

"No shit Sherlock" Santana deadpanned, rolling her eyes.

"Oh…" mumbled Brittany, feeling embarrassment tingeing her cheeks. "Well uhm, I like to norm-"

"OK, hold up _Barbie_" Santana interjected, raising her hand in the air to cut Brittany off.

"It's _Brittany_" she mumbled. Santana ignored her.

"I really have a strong urge to punch you in the face, so how abouts you like stop talking OK? Cause the only reason I'm not already beatin' your ass up right now is cause I hear you can lose a lot of brain cells if you get hit on the head, and you seem like you need to keep the small amount you already have. We clear?"

Brittany nodded dumbly, uncharacteristically lost for words.

"Good" Santana stated pulling a lighter from her jacket pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes from the other, lit up one, inhaled and raised her head upwards, blowing out the smoke that was now protruding from thick lips into the air above. This girl was smoking right in the middle of school.

Brittany was rooted to the spot stunned. The corridor's were now practically empty and her and Quinn were no doubt a little late for class but she didn't know wither it was OK to leave. She kind of felt like she needed Santana's permission to leave.

"Well this has been fascinating…" Santana began dryly. "But I gots to go learn or some shit" she said throwing her cigarette butt down on the floor and stomping out the embers with her heel. She strode away down the corridor, bag clinking away, whilst Quinn and Brittany stood there watching her leave in silence. Likely both waiting until the other girl was out of sight before daring to speak. When they watched Santana turn the far corner Quinn grabbed Brittany's arm immediately.

"That's Santana Lopez. Do yourself a favour? Stay well clear. She's dangerous; just…don't go near her OK? She's not the type we want to be associating with" Quinn said quickly, her hazel eyes staring into Brittany's blue with a rather serious expression.

"OK…" Brittany nodded slowly. Quinn sure was nice worrying about her like that, but she's a big girl, and she hadn't really planned on ever talking to this Santana Lopez again.

"She's like very attractive though, don't you think?" sighed Brittany staring idly at the corner the girl rounded only a moment ago.

"Uh…" Quinn shot her confused look "Sure if you say so, shame about her personality."

Brittany nodded in agreement, taking her own backpack from her locker.

"Well…" Quinn began looking down at a sheet of paper Brittany recognized as her own timetable. When had the other blonde taken it? "Looks like we're not in the same English class, because you have that first this morning and I'm in history, so you probably have English when I have history and vice-versa. Shame." Quinn lamented.

"It's OK, I mean we're not gonna be in all the same classes. I just dunno where mine is" Brittany said looking around at a sea of lockers and doors.

"I'll show you" Quinn smiled at her, hooking her arm around Brittany's, walking them both down the corridor. When they were walking, Brittany asked a question that had been confusing her ever since their encounter with Santana.

"Hey uhm, what did Santana mean by…uhm that nickname she gave you? You looked kinda nervous"

Brittany watched Quinn gulp and look around even though there was nobody but them walking down this hall.

"Nothing, well…It's a long story" Quinn said bringing her other hand up and rubbing her forehead in thought. "I promise I'll tell you later, just please, don't repeat what she said" Quinn said rather pleadingly.

"Yeah sure, don't sweat it" Brittany said genuinely.

"OK" sighed Quinn, looking somewhat relieved and patting Brittany's forearm thankfully.

They arrived just outside of Brittany's English class and Brittany peered through the window on the door and saw that it had already started. Great. She'd have to walk in late.

"I'm just up there in history" Quinn said pointing down the hall to a faraway door. "Meet me after?"

"OK, thanks Quinn" Brittany said as she watched the other blonde smile and sprint away up the corridor. She swayed on the spot for a few seconds, held her breath and opened the class door.

It was a rather small classroom and all heads looked in her direction as she entered. She looked to the middle-aged, fat man she assumed was her teacher.

"Sorry I'm late…I'm new and uhm…got lost" said Brittany.

"Well then, that's OK, miss…?" he inquired.

"Pierce"

"OK Pierce, take a seat" he said motioning a hand toward the classroom.

Brittany spun around gracefully, the class was divided into two rows of eight tables on each side, each table were rather tall and the students sat on high stools, two students per table. The walls at the back of the class were nothing but high bookshelves. She began walking down the middle pathway looking from side to side, every seat appeared to be taken, but she kept walking. To her relief people were smiling politely at her, she reached the second last table from the back where a tall boy sat next to another boy with a Mohawk. The tall boy gave her an awkward smile, the boy with the Mohawk winked at her. She smiled shyly back.

She was thankful for being a cheerleader, wearing this uniform must have given her some sort of status. It sort of repelled the usual stares a new person would receive. Brittany smiled; it was sort of her very own superhero outfit.

There was only one free seat in the whole class and it was behind the tall boy and at the very back of the classroom. Brittany looked to who was sitting behind the boy with the Mohawk. Her stomach suddenly felt heavy as Santana Lopez came into view. Typical. The Latina rolled her eyes at the sight of the approaching blonde. Brittany placed her backpack down on the floor underneath the table and was about to sit down when…

"Nuh uh. That seats taken" said Santana firmly, glaring at Brittany.

Brittany stood there looking around confused. She began to panic. There were literally no other seats, she looked back toward the front but the teacher was too busy having a conversation with two girls at the front. The boy with the Mohawk had now spun around on his stool and was muffling a snicker with his hand, glancing between Santana and Brittany.

"Yeah. Don't you see? The ghost of my great aunt Tana is sitting right there" said Santana, her lips forming into a malicious smirk.

Brittany knew the girl was mocking her, but she sort of believed in ghosts and didn't want to chance anything.

"Well uhm, can you like tell her to move or something? Cause I need to sit" said Brittany awkwardly, twirling on the spot a little, the pleats of her cheer skirt swaying slightly.

"Sure" said Santana suddenly smiling sweetly at her. The girl then hooked one of her feet around one of the stool legs, pulling it out for Brittany.

"There. She's moved" said Santana.

"Thanks" smiled Brittany.

She bent over and pulled out a pencil and notepad from her bag and put them on the table. She went to sit down on the chair, but in an instant, Santana with her foot still hooked around one of the stool legs pulled the chair toward her and away from Brittany.

The next thing the blonde knew was she was tumbling backwards. She fell down her tailbone slamming into the ground, and her back colliding with bookshelf behind her. Before she could register anything but the instant pain, she saw books fall around her from above, a few of them whacking her on the way down, two even hit her directly on the head. She winced and opened her eyes, her vision somewhat blurry. The classroom was now all facing her, and all she could hear was the eruption of laughter that came directed at her.

Brittany reached an arm behind her back, rubbing it. It ached badly and her vision was still kind of blurry.

Brittany's eyes fell to the floor and saw Santana's foot slowly slide Brittany's stool back to its original position. She followed the tanned leg up, past the girl's torso and finally locked eyes with the Latina.

Santana's eyes were dark and Brittany couldn't quite gauge them, all she seen was the triumphant smirk that Santana's lips formed.

Brittany groaned.

It seemed there were some things her superhero outfit couldn't protect her from.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys, thanks a lot for the reviews on the first chapter, glad you seem to like it. I more or less know where the story**** is going so for now I'll try update at least twice a week. Keep the reviews coming; I read them all and love to know what you think. Enjoy :)**

**/**

"Are you OK, dear?" the teacher asked, ogling Brittany from above.

The room was still filled with laughter that was not dying down. Brittany placed a hand on the back of her neck and cracked it. She felt a headache coming on.

"I'm fine" she mumbled, wincing as she stood up feeling the room spin a little. "Sorry about the books"

"Oh not to worry, I'll get them" the teacher said bending down and placing the books back on their shelf. "You just sit down"

Brittany just nodded vaguely, what happened still not really sinking in.

Brittany sat on her stool and didn't even look Santana's way. She hadn't felt this dazed since she took antibiotics once and forgot her own name. She now began to feel anger and hurt sink in. Why had Santana done that? She didn't even know Brittany. She had done nothing wrong. Much to her relief, the class was now talking amongst themselves, only a few still looking at her. At least they were no longer laughing. She rubbed the back of her neck again; it was aching. Brittany's teacher, after clearing up the books, came up from behind and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Do you not want to go to the nurse, Brittany? For your neck?" he asked.

"No It's fine just-"

"Oh don't worry Mr. Henderson…" Santana interjected quickly, her voice sounding sweet and sincere, mockingly so. "I'll kiss it all better" she finished, her voice sounding lower. The teacher cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"Yes well, on with the lesson…" he mumbled, toddling back down toward the front.

Did Santana just say she would kiss Brittany's neck better? Brittany shifted in her seat slightly. Against her better nature she turned slowly to look at Santana. The girl had a small smirk on her face and curious eyes that were just looking at her, as if Santana were amused by Brittany's existence, even though she wasn't doing anything.

That smirk. Brittany was sure Santana had many kinds of smirks, but this one in particular irked her. So much so that she felt anger bubble at the back of her throat. She felt humiliated.

"Why did you pull my seat away?" hissed Brittany.

"Bored" shrugged Santana coolly.

"That really hurt, you're really mean, do you know that?" said Brittany, her voice rising a little above a hiss, she felt even more annoyed at the Latina's indifference.

Santana's smirk just grew wider, as if she were amused by Brittany's anger.

"You wanna know what I think?" Brittany said.

"Not really _Barbie, _since a) you don't "think" b) I don't give a shit, but no doubt you're going to indulge what goes on in that tiny little blonde cheerio brain of yours anyway, so out with it afores you combust for thinkin' too much"

Brittany huffed then frowned. She couldn't recall the last time she had felt this annoyed by a person. She normally made friends with people and most people liked her back.

"Well that blonde, cheerio brain of mine thinks you're like a total bitch." Brittany blurted out, her eyes going wide as she said it.

Santana's smirk faded and her eyes suddenly looked glassy. Crap. Brittany immediately regretted saying that. She suddenly felt cold sweat on the back of her neck form, and that was just from Santana's cold icy glare. This girl really was a force to be reckoned with. Brittany gulped quickly, she was sure Santana was about to punch her or something.

Much to Brittany's surprise and relief; Santana's smirk slowly returned and again was looking at Brittany with a sense of patronization and amusement.

"Hey Puck!" Santana tore her eyes away and hissed to the Mohawked boy sitting in front of her. The teacher was writing stuff on the board for them to copy down but Brittany couldn't even tell you what this lesson was about – something to do with English. When the boy didn't turn around, Santana flung a pen at him and it whacked the back of his neck. Brittany pursed her lips, trying her best not to laugh and admit she found it pretty funny.

"Oww! Dude! What? What is it?" he asked spinning around on his chair groaning.

"She thinks I'm 'a total bitch'..." said Santana, finger quoting for emphasis.

"Who?" Puck frowned.

Santana cocked her head toward Brittany beside her.

Puck and Santana looked to Brittany and burst out laughing, trying to muffle their laughs so the teacher wouldn't hear. Brittany frowned again feeling the uncomfortable tug of humiliation.

"Yeah sweet cheeks…" said Puck to Brittany a friendly smile on his face. "The sky's also blue."

"Not all of the time" Brittany said airily. Puck and Santana looked to each other and chuckled at the same time yet again. Brittany sighed. They were really beginning to annoy her and she wasn't a person often annoyed by anything, much less people. Except her mother maybe.

"Hey Santana, you coming to Karofsky's party next week?" Puck asked, turning fully around.

"If there's free beer then you'll find me there" Santana said, examining her black polished nails.

"Cool, me and Finn are going too, ain't that right?" Puck said nudging the tall boy beside him. The other boy stopped writing and half turned around on his stool. He wore a dopey smile.

"Yeah…I guess…"

"Great, a night out with Puck and _tree trunk_, awesome" said Santana rolling her eyes.

Finn gave a weak smile and turned back round.

"We need to make a pussy pact though" said Puck grinning, eyebrow raised. "You know, after what happened last time when we hooked up with that same chick…" he added.

Both him and Santana looked to one another and shuddered, then quickly began sniggering. Santana sighed and rolled her tongue along her bottom lip.

Brittany's heart sped up a little. Did Santana like girls? The way she liked girls? Or did she like boys and girls the same way Brittany did? Brittany had only ever kissed girls, and she had slept with a handful of boys back in her old school. More than she probably should have. She even dated one for a few weeks. Brittany had never slept with or dated a girl though unfortunately. Only kissed them. People never asked wither she liked girls so she never really told them, she'd tell them if they asked, but nobody ever did.

The blonde had no idea why but this new information started various thoughts to reel through her head and made her stomach flip. Maybe she had heard wrong, maybe she misunderstood. Her eyes darted between Santana and Puck who seemed to be engrossed in conversation, oblivious to Brittany entirely.

"Dude, she was hot but geez, so loud" Puck grumbled with a disgusted look on his face, scratching the back of his Mohawk.

"I practically had my fist up that girl, but seriously I didn't know wither she was having a great orgasm or wither I was killing her" said Santana, her face equally as disgruntled. "Her screams still haunt me at night…" she added.

Brittany snorted.

She couldn't help it; she found Santana's tone and miserable look rather funny.

"Eavesdrop much?" Santana shot to Brittany.

"Well I'm kinda sitting right here, and I can't tell my ears like _not _to listen, because then like how would my brain tell them to listen again if it tells them not to listen in the first place." said Brittany. She thinks she said what she meant. What she said in her head and what eventually came out her mouth were often two different things.

Santana frowned at her, seemingly caught between amusement and incredulousness.

"Woah…" said Puck slowly. "That kinda made sense" he said impressed, a stupid grin on his face.

"Eugh…shut up Puckerman" said Santana sharply, throwing another pen at him that hit him straight in the forehead.

"Ow! Why you always gotta hit me? What the fuck?" he said rubbing his head.

"I'm bored of you now Puckerman, turn around" said Santana flatly, twirling her last remaining pen in her fingers.

The boy grumbled as he did as he was told.

"Miss Pierce?" came Mr. Henderson's voice.

Brittany looked up inquiringly.

"Since you're new, we sort of do this thing where a person stands up and tells the class about themselves, just a short introduction, so If you will…?"

Brittany swallowed. Great. She sighed as she slowly stood up and looked around to the rest of the class who had now spun around on their seats to face her. She looked to Puck who blew her a kiss. She giggled shaking her head. He put her at ease, surprisingly.

Thwack.

Santana's last pen made contact with Puck's head.

"Lopez! We'll have enough of that!" bellowed the teacher's voice.

"Whatever lard ass" Santana shot back.

Brittany's eye's widened, she wondered if Santana was born with this much guts. She also wondered how so much hate could fit in one tiny little body.

"See me after class, miss Lopez" the teacher said, his tone serious.

"I look forward to it" mumbled Santana loud enough for most people to hear.

"So Brittany, tell the class a bit about yourself, hobbies that sort of thing" the teacher said, ignoring Santana.

"Well uhm…" Brittany began twirling slightly on her feet. "We moved up here from Louisiana cause my mom got a better job, my dad has a job too, he's in the army but he's actually like away in Afghanistan right now? So I don't get to see him all that much…" Brittany paused distracted by a tapping sound that had begun as soon as she spoke.

Brittany flickered her gaze down to the girl sitting next to her. Santana had begun annoyingly tapping her nails against the table, her head resting on her other hand. She looked thoroughly bored being forced to sit and listen to Brittany.

"And uhm…" Brittany continued looking back at the rest of the class, clearing her throat. "I dunno, my hobbies I suppose are looking after my cat, shopping, oh! I love to dance, that's why I joined cheerios, I'm a good dancer, I wanna dance when I leave school…"

"Excellent!" bellowed the teacher. "Thank you Brittany, now back to the lesson, I want you all to write down what's on the board then I'll hand you out your Shakespeare play books, and I want you to answer the questions in them."

The class groaned quietly in futile defiance.

Brittany began to sit back down but stopped and looked down to make sure Santana wasn't there to pull her chair away again. She wasn't. So she sat. Puck bent over and grabbed Santana's pen and placed it back on the table.

"So…" came Santana's voice, ignoring him. Brittany turned her head to face those dark brown eyes. "You're from the south, huh?" she asked not sounding interested in the answer whatsoever.

Brittany nodded.

"Thought so…" sighed Santana, another small smirk tugging at the side of her mouth.

Brittany frowned wondering what she meant. Santana seemed to sense Brittany's confusion and went on to clarify.

"Well you do sort of have that _inbred_, dumb fuck look about you" she said emphatically.

Brittany balled her fists up and felt like she could only take so much more of this girl before she did something. She just didn't understand. She hadn't done anything and had barely said anything to Santana, yet here the Latina was, goading her for responses. It was hopeless either way Brittany thought – if she didn't rise to it and say nothing in response, Santana would keep prodding her, and yet if she were to say something, Santana would simply retort with something meaner or use Brittany's own words against her. Brittany sighed in resignation as her predicament washed over her.

"What is your problem with me?" Brittany whispered to Santana.

"You're a freakin' cheerleader, all your kind are the same…" Santana said with disgust, her eyes rolling over Brittany's body.

"What are you talking about? You don't even know me…"

"Whatever. I know enough." said Santana, her eyes faltering it's gaze back down to her work.

Brittany shook her head in confusion, and feeling annoyed - returned to her own work. She hadn't even finished writing out what was on the board. If she were going to sit next to Santana all year, then she'd surely fail this class and she swore to herself she wouldn't allow that to happen. Yet she got the feeling that nobody in this class would even want to switch seats with her. Puck maybe, but what was the point in that? She'd much rather have Santana beside her where she can see, than lurking behind her. Plus, she was sure she'd been on the receiving end of Santana's many pens.

Mr. Henderson was now going around the tables handing out books. He handed two to Finn and Puck then came to Brittany's table.

"Sorry girls, we have an odd number of books – you two will have to share."

Brittany didn't need to look at Santana to know she was probably rolling her eyes. The teacher opened up the book at the appropriate page and placed it in the middle of the table. Brittany sighed as she stood up slightly and shifted her chair to the middle of the table, Santana doing the same. The teacher reminded Santana he wanted to see her after class and walked back down the front.

Brittany and Santana were now sitting side-by-side, chairs bumping and Brittany stole a quick side-glance at Santana who was simply writing away. Brittany noticed she was left-handed. Brittany shut her eyes and inhaled slightly. Santana smelled of smoke and leather with a hint of coconuts. She liked it. It was oddly intoxicating.

Brittany finally finished the work on the board and could now move on to questions about Shakespeare. She found it terribly confusing. Normal words were hard enough.

"You'd better hurry up and finish these questions _Blondie_ cause Imma need to turn the page soon" said Santana, staring at Brittany. She was sitting so incredibly close, her stare was even more intimidating up-close.

"I'm trying" sighed Brittany impatiently. She hated rushing her work.

"Try _harder_" said Santana almost through gritted teeth.

10 minutes passed and Brittany had answered all questions as best she could and was now on the last one. Santana flipped the page over to the next.

"Hey!" Brittany hissed. "I'm on the last question, can you wait a few minutes?"

"Nope" said Santana simply.

Brittany frowned and reached forward to flip the page back, but the back of her hand instead skimmed the back of Santana's who got there first.

Brittany suddenly felt a jolt of what felt like electricity shoot from the back of her hand, up her arm, to her heart that shot down and settled then burned between her legs. She quickly retracted her hand and looked at Santana with wide eyes. The Latina withdrew her hand too and briefly looked at Brittany with a slightly confused crease in her brow. Brittany gulped thickly, her heart now beating faster. Had Santana felt it too?

All too quickly Santana's expression dropped into its usual apathetic default.

"What are you staring at me like that for?" she asked, suddenly sounding nowhere near as hostile though.

"N-nothing…" Brittany mumbled shaking her head.

Santana reached forward and turned the page back to the one Brittany was still working on.

Brittany looked up, eyebrows raised at Santana.

"Thanks" she said quietly, feeling a small smile creep up on her face.

"Yeah well whatever…" Santana shrugged nonchalantly, folding her arms and raising her chin. "Just hurry up".

Brittany nodded vigorously and went to it. Her mind was racing though. What was that? She wasn't crushing on this girl was she? If so Brittany thought, it was probably the most inappropriate crush she'd ever had, and that's including that one she had on the red Tellytubby when she was a kid.

The class soon ended and Brittany found herself desperate to get out but not wanting to leave at the same time. It was weird. She met Quinn outside and turned to see Santana and Puck run away from in the opposite direction. Clearly Santana didn't have plans to stay behind after class. Brittany sighed as Quinn hooked her arm around Brittany's once more.

"So how was your English class? Probably boring, right?" the other Blonde said smiling.

"Actually it was like...well...pretty interesting actually" Brittany said as they began to walk through the busy corridor.

"Oh?" Quinn said, sounding surprised.

"Yeah…I sit next to Santana Lopez and she like pulled my chair away as I was about to sit on it and I fell and everybody laughed" said Brittany screwing up her face, now realizing that the pain in her back and her neck was still slightly there.

"She did _what!_" Quinn said angrily as they both came to a halt. "Don't worry Brittany, I'll have words with her."

"No Quinn, it's OK really, I can handle her myself."

"You sure?" she asked uncertainly.

Brittany nodded.

"Well…OK…" she resigned. "But if she does _anything _like that again you tell me."

"I will" Brittany said as they went to their next class.

The rest of her classes that day were pretty mundane, but she got some work done and was pleased she didn't come across anything that confused her too much. In fact, there was an irony that despite all the books and work she had done today, it was a person that ended up confusing her the most. Santana.

Brittany only lived a 5 minute walk from McKinley so it wasn't long before she was reaching the stairs on her porch. Her mom who had similar blonde hair and blue eyes to her was outside watering a plant. The sun was still scorching.

"Hey you, how was your first day?" she asked.

"Fine I guess" Brittany shrugged.

"Did you meet any new friends? I mean, aside from Quinn that is?"

"No."

Her mother's shoulders slouched in disappointment.

"You know Quinn's a nice girl and everything, but you really should be making friends you know, you can't have just one." She said sternly.

"Yes mom…" sighed Brittany rolling her eyes and entering her house.

Brittany was exhausted from classes and cheer practice, so she went up to her room and collapsed on her bed. Her cat, Lord Tubbington already occupying it. She always wondered how such a large cat managed to even get up here. She reached out and scratched his chin. He purred. Brittany tossed and turned trying to get some sleep, but it was incredibly warm and her thoughts weren't helping.

She didn't really understand why, maybe it was because she had never met such a person, but it really annoyed her that Santana didn't like her. She frowned wondering why it was even bothering her. It's not like _everyone _had to like her, even if she was nice, right? Brittany groaned and rolled over to her bedside unit, opened a drawer and took out the one thing she knew would help her sleep. It was one of her dad's woolen caps. It was grey. She brought it up to the pillow and inhaled, it still smelled of him. Brittany sighed. She missed her father very much Brittany thought as her eyelids felt heavier, eventually slipping into slumber.


	3. Chapter 3

The next few days of Brittany's school week went by relatively uneventful. From afar she watched as other kids got locked in the toilets, slushied and their money stolen. Brittany was thankful she didn't have to worry about any of that. Sitting next to Santana for three days in a row also became surprisingly bearable with each lesson. She didn't know wither it was because the Latina had simply gave up trying to annoy her so much or wither Brittany just learned to drown the sound of her voice out. Still, the occasional insult came, along with the usual laughing from Santana and Puck at Brittany's expense. She answered a question wrong in English and she never heard the end of it for the rest of the lesson. Oh well. At least she had new subject lessons to look forward too, one of which included Spanish, she knew a little from her old school but only key words and phrases – it was nice to be in a lesson where everybody as native English speakers were just as confused as her. It didn't make her feel stupid.

She arrived at Spanish class with Quinn and her friend Mercedes. She seemed nice enough. Maybe if Brittany befriended her too she could finally go home and tell her mom she made another friend. Brittany and her mom didn't get along very well, her mom was all about social impressions and reputation, Brittany found herself being asked if she made any more friends, if she gotten better grades or if she had a nice boyfriend rather than how her day was. She missed her dad very much; he'd be back soon enough though, for a while at least, before he's sent away again.

This classroom was arranged like the rest of her classes, two per table and two rows.

"Sorry Brittany, I already sit with Mercedes" Quinn apologized taking her seat at the front.

"Girl, don't worry, she'll be fine" Mercedes said to Quinn.

Brittany smiled at Quinn. She sure was nice, she was always worrying about her and asking her if she was OK and if she needed help with anything. Quinn even carried both their lunch trays in the cafeteria. Brittany was lucky to have made such a good and popular friend like Quinn.

"Brittany?" came a male voice.

Brittany turned around and walked toward her teacher's desk. His name was Will Schuester, he always wore lots of sweater vests and had very curly hair it sometimes distracted Brittany a lot. He also ran the school's Glee club. Brittany knew this because yesterday a short girl with a large nose and even larger vocabulary tried passionately to get Quinn and Brittany to join. Quinn laughed and said it was social suicide, Brittany didn't know what she meant by that, all she knew is she wanted to join if she could dance there, and she loved to dance. Quinn warned the girls name was Rachel Berry and that she was to avoid her like the plague. Brittany didn't think the girl was all that bad, a little annoying and spoke a lot, but nice enough. Quinn was right about Santana though, so Brittany trusted Quinn's judgment, therefore she wouldn't join Glee club if Quinn really insisted she shouldn't, even though she really wanted to.

"There's two spare seats at the back next to two of our other students, and here's your Spanish workbook" Will said handing her a book, a friendly smile upon his face.

"Thanks Mr. Shue" said Brittany as she spun around, gave a small wave to Mercedes and Quinn and headed up to the back of the classroom.

Brittany couldn't believe her luck as a sense of déjà vu washed over her. The second row from the back sat Rachel Berry alone, and behind her sat Santana also alone. Rachel beamed at her as she approached, even moving her bag off from the spare chair next to her to make room. Brittany shot her an apologetic look and walked by her and quickly sat down next to Santana. Today she was wearing a green dress, leather jacket and black Fedora hat. Brittany always thought she looked awesome, like she was going to a party or club everyday, maybe her life was one giant party – Brittany was sure she wasn't invited though.

"Uhm…what the actual fuck are you doing?" came the usual tone of her voice laced with annoyance.

Rachel now turned her chair around slightly and watched them both with interest.

"Sitting" Brittany shrugged.

"I see that _Einstein_, how abouts you try sittin' next to _Barbra_ there instead" she said flatly, nodding her head to Rachel who seemed entirely unfazed by the nickname.

"Uhm…no thanks Santana, I'd rather sit next to you" Brittany said simply. Both Santana and Rachel raised their eyebrows. "Besides…" Brittany continued. "I don't really trust you sitting behind me after you like pulled my chair away, and honestly? I feel kinda sorry for you, I mean clearly nobody likes you enough to sit next to you, even Puck, so…uhm…yeah…I think I'll sit here."

Brittany looked up to Rachel who was sitting mouth agape, Brittany then turned to Santana who was sitting arms crossed frowning deeply at her. Her eyes looked even more glaring shadowed by the rim of her hat.

"So ladies! Have you two given anymore more thought to my propositions?" Rachel interjected clapping her hands together, no doubt try to calm the impending Santana storm.

"You asked _her _to join Glee club?" Santana asked dubiously.

"She's a terrific dancer" said Rachel matter-of-factly.

"Wait uhm, you asked Santana to join Glee club too?" Brittany asked, surprised.

"She's a terrific singer"

"You can sing?" asked Brittany, eyebrows raised impressed.

"lil' bit" Santana shrugged casually.

"She's being modest, she has this gorgeous raspy voice, it really is rather impressive. I for one have a flawless vocal range and pitch but even I have to admit I am somewhat envious of the tonal quality to Santana's voice. It really is something to be admired." Rachel said beaming at Santana.

"You're lucky I can tolerate your disgusting fan-girling _Berry_ otherwise I'd either have my boot up your ass or my tongue down your throat by now" said Santana.

"Whilst I am flattered by both of those suggestions Santana, you still haven't really answered my question" countered Rachel.

"No." Santana told Rachel flatly.

"But you haven't even given it some consideration and we really need the numbers for our upcoming sectionals performance, and I know I may be a little obnoxious, and yes somewhat conceited and completely selfish but for once I am asking you for something that's not just entirely about me and I-"

"Alright man hands" interjected Santana, raising a hand. "First of all? Breathe when you talk, OK?"

Brittany grinned but couldn't help but feel confused. Were these two friends? Santana's insults didn't sound nearly as harsh and their banter was…friendly. Brittany frowned. How could these two get along? They couldn't be more polar opposites if they tried. Brittany began to feel an uncomfortable feeling in her stomach. She wasn't jealous, was she? She was being silly.

"And I'll think about it…" sighed Santana regretfully.

Rachel gasped then clapped her hands "Oh! This is going to be fantastic-"

"Hold up, I said I'd think about it, that's all."

"Yes, yes of course" said Rachel holding both her hands up defensively. "Take all the time you need" she squealed then turned around on her chair.

Brittany just sat there the whole time; head on hand, smiling dopily at Santana. She kind of had a whole other side to her Brittany thought. The blonde was beginning to think her tough girl act was just that – an act.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer" Santana said sharply, side eyeing the cheerleader.

"But I don't have a camera with me" Brittany blurted out, scrunching her face up.

"I…" Santana began, shaking her head in disbelief. "I didn't mean literally_ dipshit_."

"Oh…"

"Alright guys" came Mr. Shue's voice from the front as he clapped his hands together enthusiastically. "Now I want you all to write a paragraph or so describing yourself – in Spanish."

Groans came from the class.

"Now c'mon guys, I know writing Spanish is sometimes even harder than speaking it, just do the best you can, your books have some keywords to help you out."

Brittany opened her notepad and her book and stared blankly at the page. No more than two minutes could have passed when…

"Finished" sighed Santana, sounding bored.

Brittany snapped her head up and looked over to her paper, she had already written an entire page. They only had to write a paragraph. Brittany began to panic and feel her brow sweat. She hadn't written one word. She began clicking her pen anxiously. She couldn't fail, she just couldn't, her mother would hate her even more than she already does. Santana seemed to notice Brittany eyeing her paper.

"I'm fluent…" Santana said, even though Brittany never asked. "Duh. I honestly don't know why they force me to take this stupid class, I mean I have a free period next, they may as well give me two instead of forcing me to come here. Whatever" shaking her head.

"That's kinda cool, I wish I was as smart as you" smiled Brittany.

She could have sworn she seen a small smile tug at the Latina's lips too. All to quickly it was gone.

"Yeah well…you want me to tell you what to write?" suggested Santana. "I'm bored and gots nothing else to do" she pointed out.

"Really? You wanna help me?" asked Brittany sounding rather breathless. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

Santana merely shrugged.

"OK…so uhm, what should I write?" asked Brittany sucking on the end of her pen keenly.

"Mhmm…" hummed Santana looking up in thought, bopping her head from left to right indicating she was weighing up her options.

"How about, mi nombre es Brittany Pierce. Yo soy una puta. Paso la mayor parte de mi tiempo con mis tobillos detrás de mi cabeza, ya sea en la práctica de porristas o de otra manera. Doy una vuelta en mi pequeño mundo, porque quiero que todos me aman y no pueden aceptar el hecho de que el mundo real no es todo sol y arco iris y estoy negando el hecho inevitable de que mi padre es probable que vuelva a casa hecho pedazos. Ahora me siento al lado de Santana López, quien es un ser humano perfecto."

"Wow…that was really sexy" Brittany breathed out, then felt her cheeks blush. "You're accent I mean…" she clarified, cracking her finger knuckles nervously.

A smug smirk just spread itself across Santana's face.

"Uhm, but can you repeat all that like a millions times slower cause I never wrote any of it down" said Brittany sheepishly.

"Fine" sighed Santana impatiently, rolling her eyes.

Santana repeated it all and Brittany had to ask her twice more to repeat it. The blonde found it hard to concentrate when Santana was speaking lowly like that, and she couldn't help but feel mesmerized at the way the Latina rolled her R's or the way her tongue poked out with every pronunciation of L's. Brittany's stomach clenched as she stared at the girls mouth and lips. She wished this silly crush would hurry up and pass. It just seemed to be getting worse.

"So uh, what have I wrote?" Brittany asked, laughing a little.

"You're name, you're a cheerleader, you like to dance, you sit next to me, usual stuff." Santana said waving a hand dismissively.

"Ah OK, I wondered how your name was in there…well uhm…thanks" Brittany said grinning as she stood up and practically skipped down to the front of the class to hand in her paper. On her way back she smiled at Quinn and Mercedes who smiled back. When Brittany returned to her seat, she asked Santana a question.

"You said you have a free period next? Well uhm, so do I but Quinn's got class. You wanna hang out or something?" Brittany asked.

Santana stared at her incredulously, eyebrow raised.

"Me hang out with you? A cheerio?" she scoffed.

"Yeah…why not?"

"Me n' Puck normally just hang around under the bleachers smoking weed and sleeping, but he's playing a practice game with the rest of his jock assholes so…I'll probably still be at the bleachers watching em' anyways."

"OK…" Brittany said slowly, not knowing what else to say. Did she have permission to come along with her or…?

"Eugh…feel free to stalk me _dipshit_, it's not like I can stop you, doesn't mean I have to talk to you or anything" she said bluntly.

Brittany grinned. She knew what she was going to be doing for the next hour. She could watch Santana do anything and often found herself just watching her. When she was smoking, when she was laughing, when she was walking, when she snuck the occasional gulp of Jack Daniels in class, when she bent over in her dresses, when she spoke, when she breathed. Brittany mentally shook herself. She watched Santana a lot. Too much.

"Brittany?" came Mr. Shue's voice.

Brittany looked up.

"See me after class" he said sternly with a grave look on his face.

Brittany gulped. What was wrong? Had she done something wrong? Had other teachers told him how stupid she was? Was she going to get held back a year?

The class soon ended as students poured out. Quinn shot her a questioning look but Brittany shook her head to say everything was OK, except she didn't know if it really was. Once the class was empty Mr. Shue spoke to her.

"Next time…don't let miss Santana Lopez do your work for you" he said, holding up her paper.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her throat feeling dry and her face turning white.

"You know what I mean. Look, since this is your first class I won't put this on your permanent record-"

"Oh please don't" Brittany begged. Her mother would kill her if she got caught cheating.

"I wont, but next time if you need help? Ask me, not Santana. I mean really, do you even know what this says?" he asked, handing the sheet of paper to her.

"Yeah, I'm a dancer and cheerio and…stuff…" Brittany said slowly taking the paper from him and looking down at the words.

"No Brittany…" said shaking his head and gave her a sympathetic look. "It says some rather nasty things"

"Read it to me." Brittany said quickly, thrusting the paper back down in front of him.

"Look Brittany as your teacher, me saying these things to you would be highly inappropriate-"

"Look Mr. Shue" Brittany cut him off. "You know I'm gonna go home and look it up so just like save us both time and tell me what it says. Please" she practically begged.

There was a brief silence.

"OK…" sighed , tilting his head to the side slightly as if preparing himself to read the paper out loud.

Brittany pursed her lips wondering what could possibly be so bad that he didn't want to read out loud.

"It says…My name is Brittany Pierce. I am a whore. I spend most of my time with my ankles behind my head, either in cheerleading practice or otherwise. I walk around in my little world, because I want everyone to love me and can not accept the fact that the real world is not all sunshine and rainbows and I am denying the inevitable fact that my father is likely to come home in pieces. Now I sit next to Santana Lopez, who is a perfect human being" he finished shaking his head in disbelief and rolling his eyes at the last comment.

Brittany balled her fists and felt hurt and anger wash over her, and a lump form in her throat. Her worry about her dad not coming home alive, her getting called a slut which she always was in her old school, her intelligence. Santana had harshly pointed them out in one fell swoop. Almost all of her insecurities.

"I'm sorry Brittany…"

But Brittany was already storming out the door, paper clutched tightly in hand. She knew right where she was headed – the football field. She was going to kill Santana Lopez.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey guys, totally overwhelmed with the response to this story, keep the reviews coming; glad you guys are enjoying it. I need to apologize for the last chapter though, it fell a bit on the short side and there were stupid grammar errors (such as they're/their, which normally I'm anal about lol), but I was on my way out and didn't have time to re-check it. So just to let you know that normally my chapters will be relatively error-free. So anyway here's the latest chapter, Brittana get a bit more complicated. :D**

**/**

The sun was not helping Brittany's mood at all as she stomped onto the grassy fields of the football pitch. Every stomp of her foot, every beat of her heart seemed to fall in unison– she felt her pulse beat against her very skin in only what could be described as sheer anger and adrenaline. It was a very hot day as she wiped her brow, but that was the least of her concerns right now. There was a handful of senior students spread out on the bleachers, no doubt on their free period too. Out on the field there were a dozen or so boys playing football all wearing their McKinley gear, Brittany spotted their over-sized coach by the name of Beiste who was yelling random things at them. Brittany wasn't listening at all, she was looking frantically everywhere for a flash of green dress, or a cloud of smoke, or a hat, or those damn legs. She huffed; Santana was nowhere to be seen. She did however spot a familiar face in the crowd nearby, Rachel was reading a book sitting next to another boy with extremely gelled hair and wearing a black shirt with a bright neon green bowtie. If this were any other day Brittany would be fascinated by him, and ask him a bunch of questions and maybe ask to borrow his bowtie – but she couldn't afford to get distracted now.

"Where is she?" Brittany practically barked at Rachel.

Rachel looked entirely taken aback as did the boy sitting next to her. Brittany was too at the sound of her own voice to be honest, she sounded like another person entirely when she was mad.

"I…I assume you mean Santana?" she squeaked.

Brittany simply glared at her. Brittany momentarily felt what it must be like to be Santana and have people look at you in timid fear.

"Over there" Rachel said quickly, her hand on her chest with the other pointing meekly across the opposite side of the field. Brittany spun around and raised a hand to shield her eyes from the blaring sun; there was nobody over there. She looked back to Rachel, frowning for an explanation.

"Oh! You can't really see through the gaps from here but she's usually skulking underneath the bleachers smoking away, honestly I told her if she's going to join Glee club then she'd seriously have to reconsider her lifestyle choices, smoking damages the vocal chords and I for one wont allow-"

"Thanks Rachel" Brittany cut her off, not really in the mood to hear the girl's persistent rambling. She strode in the opposite direction around the football field toward the bleachers at the far end. She was kind of glad she was so angry, it was the only thing keeping her from crying.

Brittany rounded the corner by swinging around one of the metal pole stands of the bleachers. She came into view of the area beneath, the ground stripy with the sunlight coming down from the gaps in the stand above. There was a small wooden table with a radio on it, a fluffy rug on the ground and a tattered old brown sofa; it was almost like a small living room. Santana was there, lying legs crossed on the sofa, spinning her hat with a finger in one hand and the other behind her head; she looked in deep thought. She didn't seem to notice the blonde was there. It momentarily sidetracked Brittany, but then she remembered why she was even here.

"You!" Brittany heard her own unsteady voice say.

Santana shot up in surprise, and then stood up slowly throwing her hat down and glancing between Brittany's face and the sheet of paper fisted in her hand that the blonde was now holding up.

"Ah, I take it you got an A+ for that flawless Spanish then? Well I thought it was flawless, if I do say so myself" she said smugly, shrugging with the usual smirk on her face.

"You think this…this is funny?" asked Brittany disbelievingly, her voice beginning to crack and tears beginning to sting the back of her eyes, she blinked, willing them to go away. She marched forward until she was standing right in front of Santana.

"Yeah…I do actually" Santana began, folding her arms defensively as Brittany approached, and her smirk growing slightly wider. "I mean, _c'mon_! That bit about the ankles behind your head in cheerios and otherwise – that was pretty funny, I'm a bit of a comedic genius don't you think?"

"Oh yeah, _real_ funny. Funny, calling somebody you hardly know a whore. Oh and what about this bit huh?" said Brittany, flattening the paper out, her hands shaking. "You think it's funny to make fun of one of my parents dying? You think I don't think about that? You think I don't lose sleep over thinking about that possibility almost every night?"

Santana was looking wide-eyed at Brittany, she looked stunned into silence. Which just irked Brittany even more; she wanted her to say something, to do something. Anything.

"What? Now you've got like nothing to say? C'mon Santana you always have something to say, you're a 'comedic genius' after all, c'mon make me laugh!" she exclaimed, tears now silently falling from her face, her voice incredibly uneven. She wanted to be angry, assertive, but she was beginning to crumble.

"Say something!" she blurted out through the tears.

There was a brief moment of silence.

"Smoke?" Santana asked calmly, taking out the usual packet of cigarettes that peeked out from her leather jacket pocket and holding it out toward the blonde.

Brittany's tears stopped as she narrowed her eyes at Santana's offering, confused. After all that, all Santana offered her was a smoke? No apology? No explanation? Not even much of a change in facial expression. Brittany felt a wave of annoyance course through her veins unlike any she ever felt before.

Smack.

She did it. She slapped Santana right across the face.

The noise of her palm hitting Santana's cheek even made a slight echo around the bleachers above them. Brittany retracted her hand then gasped covering her mouth at her own actions.

"You know…" Santana began, flicking her hair back into place and rubbing her jawline with the palm of one of her hands. "A simple 'no' would have been fine" she said, hissing at the stinging pain undoubtedly flashing across her skin.

The anger that had been flowing through Brittany's veins a moment ago was replaced by a sinking feeling of guilt, she tried desperately not to but she began sobbing slightly again.

"I-I'm…I'm…so sorry, I've never…never hit anyone before in my life" said Brittany meekly; sweeping away the tears that fell below her eyes.

Santana just bit her lower lip scanning the ground, apparently unable to look Brittany in the eye. Brittany felt even more guilty but then slightly annoyed too.

"You're kinda useless, you…you know that?" the blonde said.

Santana looked up visibly confused.

"T-This is technically the part where…where you're supposed to like hug me and…and tell me everything's going to be OK" said Brittany matter-of-factly, her voice still sounding crackly from crying.

"Why?" asked Santana narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

"Cause that's what people do when other people are upset, they hug them and tell them everything's going to be OK" said Brittany, not quite believing she was explaining the basics of human interaction to Santana.

"Oh…" said Santana slowly, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly looking around. Brittany had barely known Santana a week, but she had never seen her look so out of her depth. It was odd and fascinating at the same time.

Brittany watched as Santana stepped forward and ineptly opened her arms.

"Uh…" the Latina hesitated, apparently not knowing which way to hug the cheerleader.

"You don't do this a lot, do you?" said Brittany knowingly.

"Uh…no, not really" Santana replied, dropping her arms and fidgeting with her hands.

Brittany's heart swelled a little as she took the initiative and wrapped her arms around Santana's waist, leaning down slightly to rest her chin on the shoulder of Santana's jacket. Santana wrapped her arms around Brittany's neck in response and leaned into the blondes other shoulder. Brittany was no longer crying.

Brittany shut her eyes and inhaled the familiar scent of smoke mixed with leather and coconuts; it overwhelmed her senses. She hummed contently. This felt real nice. She was sort of tingling.

"I'm sorry…" she heard Santana mumble. Having Santana this close to her was making it really hard to concentrate; she didn't want to say anything stupid. "I was just playing with you, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything" the other girl continued.

Brittany felt a small smile pull up her lips. She simply nodded, smiling a little, letting Santana know she was listening and understood. Oh how she wished Santana would keep talking though, she could stand here forever hugging her and listening to her voice speak things into her ear. Brittany opened her eyes. This crush was getting way out of control.

"I still think you're a _dipshit_ though" said Santana lightly, Brittany giggled faintly, she knew by Santana's tone she was mostly teasing.

"Yeah well, I still think you're a bitch" she said back croakily, grinning.

Santana gave a low laugh then sighed.

"Then I guess we both have our problems" she said sagely.

"I guess" replied Brittany, trying desperately to prolong this exchange for as long as possible.

To her dismay, Santana sighed then pulled away. She then walked over and sat down on the sofa, patting the space next to her for Brittany to sit down. Brittany hesitated then followed suit, slumping down next to Santana, they both leaned back lazily at the same time. Brittany couldn't quite believe how Santana managed to make her feel enraged and hurt one minute, and strangely content the next.

"Wow, for an old sofa this is pretty comfy" said Brittany lolling her head back, turning to Santana. The other girl had her eyes shut and just nodded. "Where did it come from?" she asked curiously.

"Funny story actually. Me n' Puck got high one night and were driving around when we came across the furniture storage factory across town. Well, I ain't exactly sure why, can't really remember – but we thought it would be pretty funny to break in and just steal a sofa. So we did." Santana said shrugging, eye's still closed. "We then put it on the back of Puck's pick up truck and drove here with it."

Brittany giggled. "That's really silly."

"Yep" Santana said simply, her right hand patting Brittany's left knee. After a moment the Latina left it resting there. Brittany slowly looked down then glanced to her side at Santana; she was just lying, head back, eyes closed, she could have been sleeping, Brittany knew she wasn't though. Santana inched her hand higher up Brittany's thigh until just below the pleats of her cheerio skirt, she left it there squeezing slightly then began tracing small circles with her middle finger on the inside of the blonde's thigh.

Brittany's eyes instantly closed as her mouth fell open. Her skin burned under the other girls touch. She shot her head up and looked to Santana who was still lying there, eyes closed, completely unaware. Brittany looked back down at Santana's hand that was slowly stroking her. Up and down. Her leg muscles naturally clenched. Brittany felt a moan bubbling up from the back of her throat but she bit her lower lip harshly and swallowed it. She didn't want to break the comfortable silence; she also didn't want Santana to stop what she was doing. Ever.

A couple of minutes passed and Brittany was finding it increasingly difficult to stay in this maddening ecstasy for much longer without making a sound. She could already hear the hitch in her breathing every time the Latina's hand moved ever so slightly or when her fingers grazed over a new area of skin, and it was incredibly warm under here; the sunrays were beating down from the gaps above and the enclosed area made it very humid. Brittany swallowed thickly unable to tear her gaze away from the hand caressing her. She raised a shaky hand to wipe her brow and blinked profusely. It was really hot. She needed a drink.

"S-Santana…?" she said looking to the other girl, her voice shaky.

"Mhmm?" Santana replied casually, raising an eyebrow but eyes still shut.

Brittany frowned. How could one person be so oblivious to what they are doing? Didn't she know the torture she was inducing? Still the other girl's hand was stroking up and down, then around and under. Brittany didn't understand at all.

"I know you're like uhm, not good with comforting people but…" Brittany began, clearing her throat a little. "What you're doing right now isn't really comforting, in fact it's like super distracting and uhm…you're sorta making me wet."

Crap. She didn't mean to say that last part out loud.

Santana's movements stilled as her eyes popped open. She shot up from the sofa quickly and began pacing not looking back at the blonde.

"I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to say that!" Brittany began, standing up too and cracking her finger knuckles. "I kinda have this tendency just to blurt things out, I'm so stupid, I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry" she continued as she balled her hand into a fist and began bashing herself on the forehead with it. "Stupid, stupid, stupid" she continued to mumble as she thudded her fist against her head.

"It's fine, just forget it…" Santana said turning around and holding her hand up for Brittany to stop. "And stop hitting yourself _moron_." She added quickly, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry…" mumbled Brittany dropping her fist as she began bouncing up and down on the spot slightly. "Uhm…are we OK? Are we friends now?"

"No." Santana said sharply. "I mean, I don't really know you" she added, possibly trying to take the harshness out form her initial response.

"Right…" Brittany said slowly. "What does it mean?"

"What does _what _mean?" asked Santana looking slightly annoyed as she swooped up her hat and placed it back on her head.

"Uhm, what just happened"

Santana looked to Brittany. She didn't look angry or upset, just…indifferent.

"Nothing" she said simply, shrugging.

"Oh…" Brittany said. Santana spun around and was beginning to leave. "Wait, uhm, where are you going?" she asked quickly.

"It's almost lunch and I said I'd meet _Man Hands_."

"Oh…well uhm…I guess I'll see you in English, last period?" Brittany reminded her uncertainly.

"Guess you will" said Santana, shooting her a wry smile and departing.

Brittany sighed in relief then left a few minutes after Santana did. She looked across the field and could just manage out Santana sitting next to Rachel and the boy with the bright bowtie. She climbed up and sat on the bleachers watching the game, but her mind was still racing.

"Why did I say that? I'm so stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid." Brittany mumbled to herself repeatedly. She didn't know how long she had sat there until a voice interrupted her rambling.

"You know, talking to yourself is a sign of madness" came a suave voice.

Brittany scrunched her face looking up, blocking the sun beaming in her eyes. It was Puck. He was standing on the bench one row in front of her. Puck had a complacent grin on his face; he was dressed in his football gear and was twirling his helmet with one finger on one hand. It reminded Brittany of the way Santana spun her hat. She began to think the two were similar in some ways. Both were arrogant, careless, and stubborn. Brittany sighed. Puck lacked Santana's mystery though, and her wit, and her intelligence, and her legs, and her boobs. Brittany shook her head. What was she talking about again?

"Earth To Brittany, did you hear me?" came Puck's voice.

"Sorry, what did you say?" asked Brittany shaking her head.

"You. Me. Karofsky's party on Sunday night. Whaddya say?"

Brittany briefly remembered Puck and Santana talking about it a few days ago. Today was Thursday, Sunday was an odd day to have a party, Brittany thought.

"Wait, you're uhm…you want to take me?" asked Brittany confused. "But you and Santana are always laughing at me."

Puck's grin dropped.

"Pfft. Thats nothin'. Look babe, you're hot, I'm hot, you're a cheerleader, I'm on the football team – it's like the laws of nature." Puck said wiggling his eyebrows.

Brittany laughed shaking her head.

"C'mon, it'll be fun" he pleaded.

"I dunno…is Santana going?"

"Santana? Probably…" he said ruffling the back of his Mohawk with one hand. "I mean, I've never known her to pass up on free beer" he said shrugging.

"OK, I'll go with you" Brittany said quickly.

"Really? Ya will?"

Brittany nodded smiling.

"He shoots! He scores! Aww yeah, we'll work out arrangements tomorrow, see ya later chica!" he said grinning madly and sprinted down the bleachers and ran across the field doing what Brittany thought was an air guitar. She giggled. She heard the lunch bell ring in the distance.

Brittany and Quinn spent lunch in the cafeteria, sitting where they usually sat for lunch, at the largest table with most of the other cheerios. Brittany watched silently as they all harped on about make-up and boys and the Twilight movies. Brittany rolled her eyes, she was beginning to see Santana's dislike of the Cheerios. At least Quinn was different.

"What are you thinking?" Quinn asked smiling across at her.

"What I'm gonna wear to Karofsky's party on Sunday, you're coming too, right?" Brittany asked. Surely the most popular girl in school would be going, even if Quinn were a bit uptight.

"I guess" she sighed, toying with her food with a plastic fork.

"Puck asked me so-"

"Puck?" Quinn quickly interjected, sounding alarmed.

Brittany nodded.

"You can't go with him Brittany" she hissed urgently.

"Why not?" she asked confused.

"Look, there's something I need to tell you-"

The bell ringing interrupted her. Lunch went by pretty fast. Quinn mumbled she'd tell Brittany later. Quinn had said that a lot this week, she always said she'd tell Brittany stuff later, but later never came.

After math, Brittany practically ran to English (now familiar with the school's layout). English and Spanish were her favorite lessons. Even though she only started Spanish today. She sat next to Santana in both. But that was coincidence, right?

She took her usual seat next to Santana; still double-checking to make sure she wasn't ready to pull her chair away. Most of the lesson dragged in, the teacher giving them little opportunity to talk. Still on the plus side, her and Santana had to still share a book, which meant they had to sit close. Brittany occasionally stopped writing just to watch her. She wondered if she should apologize again for earlier but didn't really want to bring it up. Santana even eventually gave her a small smile, that just about made Brittany want to jump up and down on her chair, instead she redirected her excitement by tapping her fingertips on the table repeatedly.

"Stop that" Santana said abruptly, glaring at Brittany's hands.

"Sorry" the blonde mumbled. She sure had said that a lot today.

"I'm also still sorry about earlier" she whispered leaning into Santana's ear. She felt the girl stop writing and tense up a little. "And sorry I hit you too" she said, leaning back and peeking her head down a little to gauge Santana's reaction that was masked slightly under her hat. Santana stopped writing and put her pen down.

"Can't really complain _Blondie_" Santana said shrugging. "I do like it when a girl's rough" she said lowly, a smirk spreading across her face.

"I…uh…" Brittany stammered, feeling heat radiate from her cheeks.

"You know this whole me not making fun of you is going to be pretty hard, you're so easy to mess with" she said playfully rolling her eyes.

Brittany just smiled bashfully back. Santana wasn't so bad after all; in fact, Brittany thought she was pretty awesome.

"Alright class!" bellowed the teacher's voice. "I want you to go into groups of four and discuss what you thought Shakespeare was trying to convey in this chapter"

"Esto debería ser divertido" mumbled Santana rolling her eyes.

Puck and Finn Hudson spun around and dragged their stools back to their table.

"Hola" Puck said grinning.

"So what do you think Shakespeare was trying to-" began Finn.

"Nuh uh. We ain't _actually _going to be discussing that, idiot." Santana interjected holding a hand up.

"Hey" said Puck tapping Santana's forearm. "I found a date to the party on Sunday" he said pointing a finger toward Brittany, grinning.

"You…you're taking _her_?" asked Santana, slowly looking back and forth between Puck and Brittany with a crease in her brow. They were talking about Brittany almost as if she weren't there. Brittany bit her lower lip.

"Yeah. Why? That a problem?" asked Puck, frowning.

"No you _clown_, you were just supposed to be driving me is all" Santana said shrugging.

"Oh, don't worry I'll still drive you there, you'll get your drink on"

"Good" said Santana.

"Hey uh, don't worry Santana, I'm still going too, I'll be your date" said Finn smiling dopily and nodding his head awkwardly at Santana.

"Oh great…" began Santana smiling sweetly at him. "I look forward to enjoying it, of course the only way that will happen _Finnescence_ is if you magically grow a vagina afores Sunday, even then, there's only so much butch and general tallness I can take. I mean seriously, why the hell are you so freakishly tall? You're like a freakin' beanstalk; no doubt the night will be spent with students trying to clamor their way toward you, trying to climb up and see what magical adventures await them at the top."

Brittany and Puck tried desperately to stifle their laughs with their hands. Finn just laughed weakly.

The class soon ended and Brittany was glad the school day was over. Santana as she was packing her bag seemed very quiet. Normally she was punching Puck, or berating Puck, or laughing with Puck.

"Hey uhm…are you OK?" Brittany asked her quietly.

"I'm fine." Santana said shortly, glancing momentarily at her. The Latina slung her backpack over her shoulder; Brittany heard the usual glass bottles inside. She went to say something but Santana was already striding out down to the front and out of the class.

Brittany slumped back down on her chair and watched her leave. She guessed she'd have to go home and tell her mom that she went by another day without making a new friend. Santana Lopez couldn't be human she decided there and then. She had to be a book, for only books were so complicated. Yep. Santana Lopez was definitely the most complicated book she never read.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: The next chapter after this will be longer, so this chapter acts more as a build up, enjoy. :)**

Brittany was tapping her pen impatiently against the tabletop. It was Friday afternoon, she was in her Spanish class and it was the last lesson of the week. Her first week sure had been eventful, thanks mostly to Santana. Brittany still couldn't quite decide if meeting her was a good thing or a bad thing. She couldn't help it though. She liked Santana. A lot. She wasn't even sure why. She had every reason not to.

The class was supposed to start 10 minutes ago but Mr. Shue wasn't here and the rest of the class were talking amongst themselves. Brittany glanced to the empty chair beside her; Santana wasn't here either. Where is she? Maybe Rachel would know.

"Rachel" said Brittany eyeing the small girl at the table in front of hers.

The brunette whipped her head around with a questioning look on her face.

"Where's Santana?"

"Oh!" the other girl began, grabbing her notepad and turning her chair to join Brittany at her table. "I'm not exactly sure, maybe she's decided to skip this lesson? I mean, after all, she doesn't really _need _to take this class does she? Well even though she's technically supposed to, but this _is _Santana we're talking about here, ask her to do something and she'll simply do the complete opposite" Rachel finished, smiling at Brittany and began writing things on her notepad.

Brittany looked again to the empty chair beside her. She felt slightly annoyed and miserable at the fact Santana would just skip class. It made her feel a bit empty. Which was completely silly she thought, shaking her head.

"I've known her for a few years now and I know her rather well, but even _I_ don't know what goes on inside that girls head from time to time" continued Rachel, writing something frantically on her paper.

The way Rachel spoke about Santana, it was stern but there was a fondness there too. Brittany was still confused how an uptight, talkative, good girl like Rachel was a close friend of an anti-social, carefree, bad girl like Santana. She just didn't get it. The two were total opposites. She guessed Santana had no other friends besides Rachel and Puck (none that she knew of), but at least Puck and Santana made sense – Rachel and Santana on the other hand, didn't. It bugged her more than it should. Before Brittany knew it, these concerns were slipping from the tip of her tongue.

"What's the deal with you and Santana?" Brittany asked, cocking her head to the side, studying Rachel's reaction as the other girl stopped writing and looked up.

"Me and Santana?" Rachel repeated, looking slightly confused. "What do you mean?"

"Uhm well, you guys are like friends, right?"

"Yes." Rachel nodded slowly.

"How did that even happen though?" Brittany asked curiously.

Rachel opened her mouth to answer but somebody interrupted them.

"Hello" came a soft voice. Brittany looked up and smiled, it was Quinn.

"Mind if I join you guys?" she asked needlessly, already pulling up the empty chair next to Rachel and sat down across from Brittany.

"Looks like you already have" Rachel mumbled, turning slightly away from Quinn and began writing again. Maybe she felt like Quinn wanted to talk to Brittany alone. Quinn ignored her.

"Mercedes is on the phone to her mom" Quinn explained tilting her head backward slightly toward the front where the other girl sat. "Besides I wanted to ask you something…my mom's going away to my aunt's for the weekend, she leaves later on tonight so…I was wondering if you wanted to come over, stay over perhaps? Then we can go to Karofsky's party on Sunday together."

"But I'm going with Puck…"

"Yes well…" began Quinn, her gaze dropping downward. "You can meet him there I suppose…so…do you want to come stay at mine?"

"Really? Yeah totally, that would be awesome" said Brittany grinning. "Oh! Can we like order pizza for dinner? Pepperoni? It's my favorite."

"If you insist" said Quinn amusedly, smiling softly. "Plus, this week has been so hectic, honestly…it'll give us a chance to _talk_."

"OK…" Brittany said slowly. She figured Quinn must've meant all the times she had asked Quinn about stuff and she'd always tell Brittany 'later'. She was glad Quinn felt like they were close enough to talk about stuff. Even though she didn't really know what stuff was.

Brittany's jaw fell when Santana came sauntering casually into class, slushie cup in hand. The Latina was wearing brown cowboy boots, barely-there short denim shorts and a small loose white tank top. Aviator sunglasses rested casually on her head pulling her long black hair back a little. Brittany slowly closed her mouth as the girl approached. She looked awesomely stunning as ever.

Confusion and panic began to settle in though when Brittany saw the look on Santana's face – a devious smirk. Santana Lopez was walking toward her, brown eyes locked with blue, slushie held low at the wayside. Oh no. Brittany closed her eyes and scrunched up her face in preparation, expecting the cold ice and liquid to slam into her face at any second. Any second now. Almost. It never came. A few seconds passed and it still never came. She heard Santana come closer and inhaled the scent of smoke and fresh coconuts waft by her. Then she heard the chair next to her being moved. Brittany slowly dropped the muscles in her face and peeked her eyes open. Quinn and Rachel were frowning at Santana and Santana was in turn, sitting, frowning at Brittany.

"Daww, did you think I was going to toss this slushie all over you _blondie_?" said Santana, part mocking, part amused.

Brittany nodded dumbly.

"Tssk, but that would mean you'd get all soaked and end up dripping _wet_, and we couldn't have that now, could we?" said Santana with a sarky smirk.

The emphasis she put on the word 'wet' didn't go unnoticed by Brittany. The blondes hands began to feel clammy, she didn't want Santana to tell anybody what happened yesterday under the bleachers; she didn't want anybody else to know how she felt about Santana. Mostly because she didn't know herself. Brittany looked into those dark brown eyes and felt like she was having some sort of silent conversation with Santana.

Quinn's eyes narrowed looking between the two slowly.

"Besides, this…" Santana said putting down the slushie cup and moving the straw so it was at Brittany's side. "Is for you".

Quinn and Rachel were now looking at Santana as if she just grew an extra head.

"F-for me?" Brittany asked uncertainly looking down at the blue liquid.

"Mhmm-mhmm" hummed the Latina nodding. "Consider it another apology…for yesterday" she said, sounding surprisingly sincere.

"Why? What happened yesterday?" asked Quinn promptly, quirking an eyebrow at Santana.

"None of your business _stretch marks_."

The two glared at each other as an awkward silence surrounded the four.

"Oh well, thanks Santana, I've not actually had one of these yet" said Brittany, leaning down and taking the straw in her hand.

"Wait!" Quinn stopped her. "_She_…" Quinn began motioning her eyes at Santana. "Might have…I don't know…poisoned it or something" said Quinn, even rolling her eyes at the ridiculousness of her own statement.

"Puh-lease" Santana snorted.

"I dunno, did you put something in this?" Brittany asked tentatively.

"Geez, you know what _blondie_? This is the last time I ever try to be nice to you-"

"Oh but I like it when you're nice to me" Brittany cut her off.

"Gimme it, I'll drink if first to prove I haven't done anything to it" said Santana glaring at Quinn then leaning down to the table, grabbing the straw and sucking.

Santana looked up and locked her eyes with Brittany's as she was drinking from the straw; she then began to toy with the tip of the straw by swirling her tongue slowly around it, maintaining her hypnotizing eye contact with Brittany. Brittany could have sworn she stopped breathing, she found herself fixated by those brown orbs and that tongue and those lips. Crap. Brittany shook her head quickly. Santana smirked then gave a small wink. Brittany's breathing became rather rapid as her throat suddenly felt dry. She looked frantically between Quinn and Rachel; oh how she wished nobody could see. She didn't want people to know. Her crush on Santana was getting worse and was probably wrong but it was her problem to deal with, it was her secret, how Santana made her feel was her secret, her dirty little secret.

"See? I ain't dead" said Santana, sliding the cup back along to Brittany.

Brittany's throat was still dry. She really did need this drink now.

"Thanks, sorry I doubted you" Brittany said gently. She meant it.

"Well _maybe_ Santana, this should serve as somewhat of a lesson…" came Rachel's voice in its usual unyielding stern tone. "If you were just a little bit more nice to people, and perhaps more often, then _maybe_ they wouldn't be so suspicious of you."

"And Rachel?" Santana shot back. "If you were just a little bit taller than my chair, and perhaps even the table, I might have actually heard what you just said."

Brittany bit her lower lip to stifle her laugh. Rachel huffed then turned back and moved toward her own table, not before adding something else.

"Oh and by the way Santana, I for one cannot _believe_ you bought Brittany here a slushie when I've been your friend for years and you have never bought me one, not even that time I was crying, heartbroken over my failed relations with Finn" the brunette stated, dramatically whipping her head back around with a swish.

"C'mon Rachel, you can't stay mad at me…" Santana teased her knowingly. The other girl just huffed and crossed her arms.

"You love me…besides…" Santana continued. "Who else is going to keep you company at work? And who else are you going to totally stalk about joining glee club?"

Rachel quickly spun around on her chair and rejoined them.

"Does this mean you've made a decision?" she asked frantically.

"Maybe…I'm still thinking about it" the Latina drawled out, smirking.

"Oh you are insufferable today Santana Lopez" Rachel grunted and departed again, dragging her chair away more forcibly this time.

Santana shrugged with a satisfied smirk on her face.

"I better get back to Mercedes, I'll see you later on tonight?" Quinn said looking at Brittany.

Brittany nodded smiling. She was so looking forward to later now, she didn't have to be at home with her mom, and she'd be pleased that she was staying over at Quinn's, a popular girls house. Quinn walked back down the front.

"Here" came Santana's voice as Brittany watched her pick up the cup and hold the straw out for the blonde. "Taste"

Brittany looked to Santana then to the drink. She was perfectly capable of holding a cup by herself; but she didn't object and leaned down, taking the straw to her lips and began to drink.

"Mhmm…" Brittany hummed surprised, it was really nice and cold and she was really thirsty. She began drinking more rapidly and took more of the straw into her mouth. She froze when her lips went further down the straw and met the top of Santana's fingers that were holding the straw for her. Brittany gulped slowly as her cold lips met a warm hand.

"Do you like it?" Santana asked lowly, a small smirk on her face.

Brittany nodded slowly, not even sure wither Santana was talking about the drink.

Why did she have to be such a mess around Santana? She just didn't understand it. How could a person known for rambling become so mute by a simple touch?

"Yeah well…the blue's my favorite" said Santana as Brittany was still gulping away.

"I think it's mine too" mumbled Brittany, straw in mouth.

"How can it be if you haven't even tried the others?" Santana frowned. Brittany finished the drink and sat up properly smiling.

"I don't think I need to try the others…I already know my favorite…"

Santana's smirk grew into a wide smile. It was a rare sight. Brittany felt slightly breathless, as she took in the way Santana's eyes shined slightly and the way the dimples in her cheeks were that more visible when she smiled. It was then that Brittany realized that she had a hunch about Santana. Brittany was good at gauging people, what they were like etc. but Santana had confused her since the beginning of the week. Now at the end of the week she felt a little bit closer to understanding her, to reading her, to working out the jigsaw that she was. Santana, for some reason, wasn't good with people the same way Brittany isn't good with books. Santana yesterday offered to give her a smoke, today she offered a drink – sure they were small offerings, strange even, and rather random but Brittany thought it was Santana's way of communicating with her, the problem was is that Brittany wasn't sure how to communicate back. She wasn't the best with words. Brittany sighed watching Santana write her work down. They were incompatible in so many ways. Yet still she felt drawn to her, almost like some weird gravitational pull. She didn't even know the girl, not really. They didn't know each other at all.

"You may be a bit of a freak, but you're a lot of fun _Blondie_" said Santana suddenly as she was writing, her smirk returning to it's rightful place.

Brittany barely heard the rest of the lesson, barely heard Mr. Shue explain that somebody accidentally ran into Miss Pillsbury with a blue slushie and that she had a panic attack, barely heard the way Santana stifled a laugh and whispered 'my bad'. Brittany just sat for most of the lesson, head lazily on hand, watching Santana. She could watch her forever. Brittany sighed; she was bound to fail Spanish this year.

Later on that night Quinn and Brittany were huddled up in their pajamas under duvet covers in Quinn's living room watching scary movies, bowls of popcorn in hand. Quinn's house was real fancy and nice Brittany thought, and twice as big as her house. It even had 4 bathrooms. Why would anyone need 4 bathrooms? Brittany was lying upside down on the sofa, feet over the back and head hanging upside-down over the seat.

"Are you sure you want to watch this next movie the wrong way around?" asked Quinn amused, as she was changing DVD's.

"Quinn, you're totally thinking about it the wrong way, besides, who's to say I'm the wrong way around? Maybe _you're _the one upside down and I'm the one looking at the world properly" said Brittany simply. What if that was true though?

"You're sweet Brittany but you really confuse me sometimes" smiled Quinn coming back over to the sofa.

Brittany smiled and nodded. She knew that, she confused most people.

"Hey uhm…Quinn?"

"Yeah?"

Brittany began chewing popcorn but then felt it stuck at the back of her throat. She began coughing and spun around to sit up properly. Her eyes began to water as the popcorn finally made it's way down.

"Boy, turns out eating the wrong way round wasn't a good idea" grumbled Brittany.

Quinn laughed.

"I was wondering…what's the deal with you and Santana?" Brittany asked cautiously. She felt weird; she had asked Rachel this exact question earlier.

"I figured this was coming" sighed Quinn leaning forward and putting her bowl on the coffee table. "OK…" the other blonde said slowly letting out an unstable breath.

"Take your time, you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to and I-"

"It's not that" Quinn interjected. "I just need you to promise me you'll not tell anyone anything about me"

"Sure, I promise" said Brittany honestly. She would never deliberately hurt or betray Quinn, not when she had been nothing but so nice to her, even when she didn't know her.

"I'll just cut straight to the chase then…" Began Quinn, bringing her legs up on the sofa. "Back in our sophomore year, Santana and I were friends, best of friends even."

Brittany raised her eyebrows. She didn't see that one coming.

"Yes well…" Quinn continued. "We met because we both tried out for the cheer-leading captaincy, Sue couldn't pick between us so we both got co-captain."

"Wait…Santana used to be a cheerio? But she hates the cheerios…" asked Brittany, confused.

"I know, _now _she does, but she was only in for a few weeks anyway, then she quit."

"Why?" asked Brittany quickly, hungry to know more about the girl clogging her dreams.

"It's sort of a long story and well, most of it's my speculation about Santana, about why she is the way she is now…I can't really say anything for sure"

Brittany grabbed some more popcorn, her heart beating slightly faster.

"We've got plenty of time" Brittany shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant, but her mind was racing.

She needed to know more about Santana, to sate her own curiosity but also to dispel the Latina's mystery a bit. Maybe then this silly crush would disappear. Maybe then she could focus on making more friends. Maybe then she could concentrate in class and pass at the end of the year. She needed to know Santana Lopez, if only to know how to get over her.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I've just realized I'm getting into the habit of leaving chapters at** **inconvenient places. ;)**

"I hope you don't think less of me…" Quinn sighed, looking suddenly solemn.

"I could never think less of you Quinn" Brittany said softly, shaking her head. She crossed her legs on the sofa and listened intently.

"Well, you see…" Quinn began. "We were all friends – me, Santana and Puck that is. Well actually, if you want to be specific, Puck and I were actually seeing each other."

"Wow, OK so like now I feel weird…" Brittany mumbled.

"Oh don't worry about the party, I'm not jealous or anything, Puck and I are well and truly over." Quinn stated quickly.

"Oh…" said Brittany, nodding her head for the other blonde to continue.

"I uh…" Quinn began, her voice shaking slightly. "I fell pregnant…with Puck's child…and we were just kids at the time really, technically we still are" sighed Quinn.

"I take it you didn't plan on getting a bun in the oven?" asked Brittany bluntly.

"No" Quinn smiled sadly. "Well, by the time I realized I was too far along for an abortion, you see, my bump was barley visible to be honest and my mom is super religious, I don't think she'd even allow me to get an abortion anyway-"

"But that's not her choice, it's yours" Brittany said quickly, feeling mad.

"I know" said Quinn leaning forward and patting Brittany's hand. "And if I had known earlier I certainly would have gotten one, despite my mother's objections" she said making a light sweeping hand motion.

"Go on. This is better than any movie" said Brittany smiling, stuffing popcorn into her mouth.

"Oh I'm glad you find my life problems so amusing" said Quinn slapping Brittany on the arm playfully. "Anyway…" she continued, her smile fading quickly. "I decided that I was going to give birth and give the baby up for adoption, I thought that would be for the best, I can't take care of a baby…I just can't…I want kids someday maybe, but not now, you know?"

Brittany nodded her head understandingly.

"But…my mother has a reputation to uphold and well to be honest I didn't want the school to find out, I'd become a total outsider if that ever happened. So I didn't bail out on school until my bump was becoming too big to hide, eventually though I left school for about 2 months, the school was supportive, they sent my mom lessons every week and I was home schooled for 2 months, that's how ashamed my mother was…how ashamed I was…" Quinn finished and went into a sad silence.

"I'm so sorry to hear that Quinn." Brittany said quietly. "But, I'm not exactly sure how this like relates to Santana? Sorry I kinda don't understand" Brittany mumbled scratching her head.

"Oh!" began Quinn shaking her head. "Right…Santana…well we sort of concocted this very elaborate story of how I came down with a terrible virus and that's why I was absent from school for 2 months, Santana and Puck helped spread this rumor around school and everybody seemed to buy it."

"That was nice of them…" Brittany said wistfully.

"Yeah, Santana even spent like a week researching all of the symptoms so she could describe to people what I was like" Quinn said, laughing softly. "The problems started when it came the time to give up the baby, you see Puck wanted to keep it, he wanted us to actually become a family, he said he'd make a good father-"

"Did you believe him?" asked Brittany suddenly, stuffing more popcorn into her mouth.

"Yes" said Quinn nodding and looking around the living room forlornly. "I had no doubt he'd make a good father despite his, uh, bad habits shall we say? But that wasn't the point, that baby just didn't feel like mine, like _ours_ to keep. We called her Beth though, but that's as far a connection as I allowed. Puck on the other hand became really depressed after we gave her away and well, Santana took his side over mine, to be honest it was inevitable, my friendship with Santana was already on the rocks, I'm honestly not surprised she took his side."

"How come?" asked Brittany, intrigued.

"Well when we were both on the cheerios, I was so stupid, I didn't think…" said Quinn placing a hand on her forehead and shaking her head frantically. "I made a sly comment about her being in love with another girl, one of the other cheerios, she wasn't of course, Santana doesn't really do feelings all that well but I was just mocking her, we kind of used to do that to each other, banter back and forth, I sort of miss it" sighed Quinn shifting on the sofa slightly. "But this time one of the cheerios overheard, Laura her name was and well Santana wasn't out, not to anyone but me, Puck and her mom that is…"

"Oh" said Brittany quickly, skewing her mouth feeling awkward. She could see where this story was headed.

"I imagine you see the problem" said Quinn. "It was a mistake so she forgave me eventually I think, but we didn't speak much for a long time, Puck was sort of stuck in the middle – but then the baby thing happened and well, they both had a reason to leave me, to hate me" the other blonde said, her voice cracking slightly and her eyes looking a little misty.

Brittany didn't know what to say so she just rubbed the other girls hand.

"Santana got a lot of hassle for it from the other cheerios, I told them to stop it but they wouldn't listen, they kept giving her disgusted faces in the locker room when they were changing and always said things to her, Santana was mouthy, she gave back as good as she got but I could tell it was getting to her. She had other stuff going on at home too at the same time, and I think everything was just getting to her" said Quinn.

"What other stuff at home?" Brittany asked. She felt like she was trying to hold onto all this new information but it was all coming too quickly, like trying to keep water in your hands, she didn't want any of it to slip through the cracks.

"Honestly? I don't know, we weren't speaking much at this point, Puck was the only thing keeping us both together in the same room to be honest, Santana has started spending more time with Rachel Berry than me, of all people. All I know is that the stuff at home had nothing to do with her being gay or anything, as far as I know her mom was pretty cool with it. After a few weeks of hassle Santana just one day…snapped. Laura, the girl that overheard in the first place slushied Santana right in the middle of the hallway and Santana lost it. And I mean _lost_ it" said Quinn clutching the cross around her neck and looking pensive.

"Why? What happened?" asked Brittany.

"Santana stood there full of slushie and the next thing I knew she was dragging the girl by the hair to the bathroom…literally by the hair, dragging across the floor."

Brittany's eyes widened.

"Santana then began throwing the girls head down the toilet, bringing her back up for air then putting her back down again, she left her down there almost to drown that the girl passed out and medics had to be called in to resuscitate her."

Brittany's mouth fell open as her heart suddenly felt heavy.

"I think Santana scared herself that day and everyone else for that matter. After that she quit cheerios and everybody was suddenly scared of her, Laura had to transfer schools because she was so traumatized by the event. After that came the baby thing with Puck and well, we drifted apart. That's about as much as I know, the rest of it is gossip and my own speculation…" said Quinn finally.

"I'd like to hear it anyways" said Brittany undoubtedly, bracing herself for yet more information.

"Well Santana changed after her and Puck decided to no longer speak to me" said Quinn clearing her throat awkwardly. Brittany thought she was trying to stop herself from tearing up. "She became a lot more withdrawn, more aggressive toward people in general, she started smoking, drinking…I even hear she does drugs. But like I said this is just rumors that float around school, but I wouldn't be surprised if that's true. The rumors about Santana get more and more ridiculous to be honest; I'm not really sure what to believe anymore…" sighed Quinn.

"Like what?" Brittany asked.

"Well I know for a fact that she was in juvy for two weeks a while back…"

Brittany raised her eyebrows again. Wow.

"As to why, I honestly don't know, each rumor becomes as unlikely and ridiculous as the last, some people say she stabbed somebody, other people say she has razorblades hidden in her hair, I heard that the juvy thing was just a cover and that actually she's a government spy, oh and one girl even claimed a girl dropped dead just by looking at Santana…" Quinn laughed rolling her eyes. "I've learned to ignore such rumors, they just generate a fear around Santana – in fact I wouldn't be surprised if Santana herself made up half of those. She's changed but _I know _Santana, she's not a bad person, she's just…lost…like I was."

"What makes you say that?" Brittany's asked, her throat dry from eating popcorn and not speaking for long.

"Well like I said, I accidentally outed her and even though we weren't talking she still went through the hassle of doing research and coming up with a story to cover my pregnancy, I'll never forget that, I'll always be thankful for it."

"She could have been doing it for Puck." Brittany suggested.

"No" said Quinn quickly, shaking her head. "Puck wanted the school to know, he wanted to be a father, and Santana convinced him to keep the whole thing a secret though. You know it's weird, I always wondered why she took my side over Pucks in that particular instance, all things considering…"

Brittany inclined her head for Quinn to elaborate. She feared if she spoke then Quinn would suddenly change her mind about telling her all of this.

"Well my theory is…I think Santana respected Puck, she still does but I think she respected the fact that he was so eager to prove he'd make a good father. Santana's father left her when she was four or something, and Puck's dad was a deadbeat and my dad was super restraining before the divorce so…Santana's never really known anybody's father to be good so, I think she resents the fact that I never gave Puck the chance to be a good one."

"Mhmm…" Brittany pondered. "I've still to tell you this but yesterday Santana helped me out in Spanish…well by helped out I mean like practically wrote my work for me."

Quinn raised her eyebrow. "Never had you down for a cheater Brittany" she smiled. "Never had Santana down for helping anyone out either" she added.

"Well that's the thing she never…I suppose I learned my lesson…but she like told me to write all this nasty stuff about myself and pretended it was something else" said Brittany shrugging "She said something like how I'm denying the inevitable truth that my dad's gonna die cause he's away at war or something, but she apologized twice…I think, she said she was messing with me…so…I dunno" Brittany shrugged, still not sure how she felt about it.

Quinn made a noise of disgust. "Santana's always been close to the bone with her words, that much has always been true…but…and I'm not trying to defend her or anything" Quinn said quickly, making eye contact with Brittany. "But considering what I've just told you abut her not really understanding how anyone could be attached to their father…well…I can see why she would have thought it'd be a neat joke or something." Quinn said rolling her eyes.

"She _did_ apologize" said Brittany quietly, not even sure why she was defending someone who she was beginning to realize she knew little about.

"With a slushie? I suppose it's the thought that counts…" sighed Quinn, unimpressed.

Brittany opened her mouth to say 'and a hug', but she didn't want Quinn to know anything about what happened under the bleachers, that would mean Brittany explaining how Santana made her feel and she wasn't ready for that. Brittany had never thought anything of the fact she liked girls, but after hearing what Santana went through, she was glad she hadn't yet blurted this fact out to anyone at McKinley. She didn't see what the big deal was but she was a cheerio just like Santana was but that didn't stop people from making fun of her, people can be mean Brittany thought. She now had another reason not to tell anyone about her and Santana, not that there's much of a 'her and Santana' to talk about. Brittany's brain was still burning for more information, things she didn't understand still clouding her mind.

"So, her and Rachel became friends?" asked Brittany after a while, still confused. Quinn agreed with her facial expression, she seemed just as confused as Brittany was.

"I don't even _know _how that happened. Honestly…one girl who's likely never taken a sip of alcohol in her life, friends with one who carries it by the bottle load in her backpack?" said Quinn shrugging animatedly, indicating she was at a total loss too.

"But why does she drink? Why does she carry it around? What problems does Santana have at home? Does she still have them? What was she really in juvy for? Why did she not make things right with you? Why is she friends with Puck and Rachel? I mean really, why?" Brittany blurted out frantically, rubbing her forehead. She was beginning to feel frustrated, she thought Quinn would provide her with answers and here she sat with only more questions. Quinn looked slightly taken aback by Brittany's visual discomfort.

"Uh…Brittany relax, none of it's your problem, she's not worth caring or thinking about…" Quinn said slowly then paused, narrowing her eyes at Brittany. "Why _do _you care so much anyway?"

"I…" Brittany paused and gulped. Had she been figured out? Had she been so obvious? Oh she wished Quinn didn't know, but Quinn was smart, she was bound to know, she was bound to say something.

"Is she giving you trouble again? I know it can't be easy sitting next to her everyday in class" said Quinn sympathetically. "Especially when it seems she's taken a dislike to you, well Santana dislikes most people, but I've never seen her be so hostile toward somebody as instantly as she has you, she must really hate you…" Quinn said shaking her head.

A heavy feeling panged in Brittany's heart. Was that how Quinn saw it? Did Santana really hate her? Brittany shook her head. That can't be right. It just can't be. Santana had felt the zapping feeling when their hands touched too; she must've felt it. Brittany suddenly felt miserable – was Santana simply mocking her? Had she made up this entire thing in her head?

"No it's nothing…was just curious is all…" Brittany said sighing gloomily.

"Well sorry, I didn't mean to make our fun movie night turn into serious talk" said Quinn earnestly. "Is something troubling you?"

"I..." Brittany began then paused. Quinn had been so honest and open with her, and she felt the need to tell someone how crazy Santana was beginning to drive her after only knowing the Latina a week, but she swallowed it. "No…and I like any kind of talk with you Quinn" Brittany smiled and leaned forward hugging the other blonde.

The hug was nice, real nice. Brittany sighed. Not _Santana _nice though.

Quinn dropped the subject and they soon resumed to watching and laughing at movies, eventually Quinn fell asleep on Brittany's legs, Brittany switched the TV off and lay in silence for a while. She couldn't possibly get to sleep now; her head was talking too much. She felt stupid; she didn't know Santana at all. Most of what she heard she didn't like either, but on the other hand she felt kind of sorry for the girl. Brittany yawned then sighed. It's just a crush. It'll pass.

Brittany spent all of Saturday shopping then helping out Quinn plant vegetables in her back garden in the evening, the other blonde explained she promised her mom she would, but it was surprisingly a lot of fun Brittany thought.

Sunday night came and Brittany and Quinn had gotten ready for Dave Karofsky's party, it was 9:00pm and Quinn was insisting they hurry. She had worn a cream skirt and a white frilly top; she looked stunning but a little too conservative and maybe too classy for a typical jock's house party. Brittany smiled though, that was just Quinn. Both of them were in her room giving their looks that final touch.

"You need to totally chill or something Quinn, there isn't like an official party start time, besides, Puck isn't here to pick us up yet" said Brittany applying the last of her lip-gloss and foundation. She herself had chosen to wear a simple short black dress, her hair down and flowing below her shoulders. It was a nice change from constantly wearing her hair up being in cheerios.

"Wait…Puck is picking us up? It's a small town Brittany, a walk would have only taken us 20 minutes, we're _walking_ there" Quinn said firmly, sweeping her hair back.

"No we're not, besides I already texted Puck, he's on his way"

Quinn huffed.

"I thought you were over him?" Brittany said frowning.

"_I am_…it's not that…fine Puck will drive us" Quinn conceded. "Not expecting him to bring us back though"

"We'll walk back, it's a small town" Brittany said grinning.

"Fine" Quinn smiled shaking her head. "I don't think my mother would approve of us walking home at like three in the morning"

"Good thing she isn't here then, right?" grinned Brittany, putting her heels on. She looked herself up and down in the mirror. Hot. She felt there was something missing though. Then she remembered. Smiling, she bent down and extracted from her sleepover bag woolen gloves and a woolen hat. The gloves were white and fingerless. Brittany's hat however was a black and white woolen cap the shape of a panda's head, it had plastic eyes and a nose stitched on, and it even had stick-up ears. Brittany loved hats, she owned a lot, this one she thought was her cutest though. She tugged her hat on and slipped her gloves on, spreading her fingers out through the glove holes. She turned around to Quinn who was looking at her flabbergasted.

"What?"

"You cannot be serious…Brittany, what are you wearing? You can't wear that, it looks silly" Quinn said, her eyes serious but her mouth trying hard not to smile.

"Why? What's wrong? Don't you like my dress?" asked Brittany confused looking down and smoothing out one of the creases.

"Brittany! No…it's…you're wearing a hat and gloves, a _panda_ hat" Quinn emphasized.

"So?" Brittany asked confused, still wondering what the problem was. She looked up to try see what her hat looked liked but then remembered she was standing in front of a mirror.

"So" Quinn repeated forcefully as if the answer should be obvious. She then sighed in resignation.

"This way I look sexy _and _cute" said Brittany simply.

"There is no way I'm going to convince you to _not_ wear that, is there?"

Brittany shook her head. Quinn smiled throwing her hands up in defeat.

"Fine, but expect weird looks."

Quinn and Brittany stood outside at the drive way as Puck drove up in his blue, slightly rusted in places pickup truck.

"Wow…" Puck said slowly as he got out and looked at Brittany. "I have the weirdest boner right now."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Eww"

"Sorry" he mumbled to Brittany. "I kind of say things without thinking sometimes."

"Me too!" said Brittany excitedly. Was there really someone like her?

"Can we go now?" Quinn said shortly glaring between them.

"Sure" Puck said opening his truck door; the front was a long leather seat big enough for three people (including the driver) to sit. Brittany slid in and sat in-between Puck and Quinn. There was an awkwardness hanging in the air between the two, Brittany could tell. Brittany usually rambled when this happened, but she wasn't used to not being the source of the awkwardness herself. They were driving in silence, Brittany shifted on her seat wishing someone would break it. Puck did eventually.

"I was supposed to pick up Santana but she said she'd walk after she heard I was picking up you two" he said chuckling, shaking his head.

"Good. The feelings mutual" Quinn said shortly. Brittany just sighed feeling suddenly more down.

They soon pulled up to a large house. There were people hanging around smoking and drinking outside. Getting out of the truck, Brittany could already hear the sound of the music thudding from the house. There were sprawled out cars parked in odd places all in front of the house. They walked up and entered.

"Karofsky! C'mere bro…" said Puck entering the hallway jammed packed with people greeting a large burly boy. They both walked away talking amongst themselves.

"Some date" Quinn said sarcastically in her ear. "Trust me, you won't have Puck's attention unless you're shaking your ass in front of him."

"I might do that later then…" Brittany mumbled looking around a sea of people for a familiar face. From what she could see she couldn't recognize anybody in the hall or the few people she couple manage out in the living room. Some didn't even look like high school students, some of them looked old enough to be in college or something. Mercedes Jones came brushing by people and stopped in front of them.

"Quinn! There you are girl, look there's someone I want you to meet" she said tugging at Quinn's arm. "Brittany you don't mind if I steal her for a few minutes do you?"

"No" Brittany said, she did mind though.

"I'll be right back" Quinn said looking at her pointedly, giving her an apologetic smile. They left into the living room. She moved through the corridor past people, some were looking at her oddly (Quinn was right after all), others were smoking and Brittany was sure it wasn't regular smoke, it didn't smell like it. There were a girl and boy lying on the spiral staircase practically doing it right there. Brittany scrunched her face up. Eww. The place was dimly lit and the air was thick with heat as the music blared away. Brittany pouted. This party sucked already.

Brittany's breath suddenly caught in her throat when she seen a Latina swagger her way down the staircase. She was wearing an impossibly short and tight red dress that hugged her figure in all the right places, topped off with a small brown fur jacket. Her lips never looked fuller and her eyes never looked darker with smoky eye make up on. Santana reached the bottom and looked to be heading through the small corridor to a room at the back. Before she even could process anything other than Santana's appearance, Brittany shoved by another girl and leapt in front of Santana, blocking her path.

"Santana! Hi…" said Brittany quickly, slightly breathless from her small sprint.

Santana looked at her blankly. Her eyes traveled to Brittany's hat, then down to her legs, then slowly up her body back to her eyes. Brittany gulped under her gaze.

"Are you freakin' serious?" she began, staring dumbfounded at Brittany's hat. "Well congratulations _blondie_, you're officially the first person to stump me completely for insults, there's just so many jokes running through my head right now, I can't even…" she said shaking her head.

"Sweet! Do I get a prize or something?" Brittany smiled.

Santana rolled her eyes, and began looking around.

"You lost or something? Shouldn't you be sucking off Puck by now?" Santana scowled.

"But I just got here…" Brittany said blankly. "I mean no! Uhm, no, I don't like Puck in that way, I don't think…" Brittany said slowly, bouncing up and down on the spot slightly. Santana raised an eyebrow.

"Whatever, why're you here alone?" she asked, not sounding interested at all. Brittany felt like this was just small talk and the only reason why she was even talking to her was because Brittany was practically blocking the girl's path.

"Why're you?" Brittany countered. Santana simply glared at her intimidatingly so she figured it was best to answer her question first.

"Puck left me as soon as we got here" said Brittany as Santana snorted; she looked like she expected Puck to do as much. "And Mercedes dragged Quinn away."

"Well this has been enlightening and surprisingly amicable but I needs to go get my drink on…" said Santana trying to move past Brittany. The blonde reached out and grabbed the other girl's arm.

"Wait uhm…" she began, Santana frowned looking between Brittany's hand and her eyes, Brittany quickly dropped her grasp. Brittany gulped for another reason entirely. Turn's out physically restraining Santana wasn't a good idea. Brittany tried quickly to change the atmosphere.

"Uh…can you hold my hand?" Brittany asked quickly.

"Uh…what?" Santana said skewing up her face in revulsion.

"I mean uhm, not that, well…can you take me to where to get the drinks? I want a drink" she clarified, Santana's face relaxing.

"Oh…sure whatever" shrugged the Latina.

"Although I tend to take my clothes off if I get really drunk and dance a lot" Brittany blurted out. Crap. She hated living with her brain and mouth sometimes.

"In that case then I better lead the way" Santana said lowly as she skimmed by Brittany and flipped her hair to one side. Brittany felt her cheeks burn red. "Maybe then you'd take off that stupid ass hat" Santana added scathingly.

"Oh…" Brittany said, unable to mask the disappointment in her voice.

A boy came running by them and shoved Brittany out of the way, he looked like he was running outside to puke. Eww. Brittany straightened up and turned back to Santana.

"Santana, I meant what I said, can you take my hand? It's just that I get lost at parties real easy, I mean I already lost Quinn and Puck, there's a lot of people here and this place looks huge" said Brittany pouting.

"Eugh…" said Santana huffed, looking thoroughly annoyed at Brittany's request. "_Fine" _she complied and held out her pinky.

Brittany blinked at it. She didn't understand.

"Take it" Santana said shortly, rolling her eyes.

"Oh…" said Brittany in realization as she linked her own pinky with Santana's; the now familiar tingly sensation shooting up her arm, she felt her pinky twitch a little at the feeling. Brittany was thankful her gloves were fingerless right now. She couldn't help but grin. She held on tighter. Tingly.

"C'mon my little panda, let's get you drunk" said Santana coolly, tugging at their interlinked pinkies.

Brittany's heart jumped up to her throat. She bit her lower lip hard to force down her smile and possibly a giddy laugh. My little panda. Santana's little panda. She liked the sound of that.


	7. Chapter 7

**a/n: Update! Thanks so much for the reviews, keep them coming, I know the last chapter lacked Brittana interaction but It was necessary to flesh out some of Santana's past, anyway hope this makes up for it :D**

Santana led Brittany through a door that went into another hallway. How big was this place? Karofsky's parents must be rich or something, the blonde thought. Brittany didn't say anything; she just let Santana tug her by the pinky, leading the way, up and over people's shoulders and around others. She couldn't help but grin; she was tempted to ask if they could just walk around the house like this. That would probably seem like a strange request though so she didn't ask. Santana did let go as they swung a door open to a very warm and loud kitchen, a jock opened another door on the opposite side of the room and Brittany realized the kitchen connected with large living room. Brittany thought she could just make out Quinn, Puck and Mercedes on the sofa on the opposite end of the room, but it was hard to tell as the room was filled with people dancing and smoke was bellowing around the air. The music also seemed to be very loud back there. Plastic cups and beer cans lay clustered all around the kitchen worktops and floor.

"Pick your poison" said Santana as she opened the fridge door.

Brittany leaned over her shoulder slightly and peeked into the fridge. There were a ton of bottles and crates.

"I dunno, you decide" she shrugged.

"I think we should make shots, don't you?" said Santana a mischievous smirk across her face.

"Sure" said Brittany. She didn't really care, as long as she was with Santana. She was actually hanging out with Santana, at a party. She felt giddy at the thought.

"You don't know how to make shots do you?" asked Brittany smiling a few minutes later. She was perked atop the kitchen barstool watching Santana clamor through at least twenty different glass bottles she extracted from the fridge, pouring some into shot glasses at random.

"Nope" she smirked, pouring more liquid into glasses. She then lined ten shot glasses up on the counter and walked around the counter joining Brittany on the stool next to her.

"Maybe we can try this one first?" Brittany said holding up a shot glass with a murky green colored drink inside. Santana mirrored the blonde's slightly repelled look as she grabbed her equally as dubious drink.

"On three _Blondie_?" said Santana raising her glass and quirking an eyebrow.

Brittany nodded looking down into her drink apprehensively.

"1…2…3"

They both swigged back their drinks. Brittany instantly felt the alcohol hit the back of her throat and burn all the way down to her stomach where it felt like it set something on fire. She contorted her face up with repulsion and looked to the girl beside her who had a similar expression. They both started coughing then it slowly turned into chuckling.

"Eww, what did you put in that?" asked Brittany grinning, her voice hoarse.

"I don't even know" Santana grinned back rubbing her chest.

Brittany paused for a moment just to watch Santana smile. It was one of those rare genuine smiles; she had only seen it about twice before.

"Another?" Santana said, already picking up another shot.

Brittany nodded picking up one more.

They spent more time knocking back all their shots, how long Brittany couldn't say, time seemed irrelevant right now, after each shot they would gasp and laugh hysterically afterwards. Brittany wasn't sure what she found so damn funny but she couldn't stop. However she slowed down when she began to feel nauseous.

"My tummy is like…super upset or something" Brittany said, giggling slightly. "I think it's arguing with my brain."

Santana just frowned at her. Brittany could tell Santana was a bit drunk as she was swaying slightly on her stool and blinking a lot slower.

"You're drunk" said Brittany pointing at the Latina and sniggering.

"I ain't, look…I'm a Lopez k? We know how to handle our drinks. I happen to have built up a v-very high tolerance, especially for…for…my bestist friend in the whole world Jack Daniel" Santana slurred out holding up a hand.

Brittany giggled playing with the ears on her panda hat.

"I'm just a lil' tipsy…believe me, if I was drunk I'd either be throwing up or crying my eyes out right now" Santana said matter-of-factly.

"Is that cause you're so sad?" asked Brittany curiously, her head cocking to the side.

"What…what makes you think I'm sad?" Santana said looking surprised and slightly annoyed.

Brittany shrugged. Just a feeling she got. But her brain was feeling fuzzy and she didn't want to say anything stupid out loud, that was a problem most days but it was a bigger problem now that she had alcohol running through her veins and Santana for company.

The door swung open as the loud music came pouring back in, but then became muffled again as it shut over. The boy Brittany knew as Dave Karofsky came in, he was still wearing his school letterman jacket.

"Santana" he said simply, smirking, grabbing a beer from the fridge.

"David" the Latina smirked back.

Brittany frowned slightly. They were looking at each other as if they were sharing a private joke. The large, burly boy walked back round and stood across from them.

"Tell me you haven't drank that much" he said, his eyes bulging at all the empty shot glasses.

"Yup" Santana nodded slowly. "This one here helped me" she said patting Brittany roughly on the shoulder. Brittany chuckled and nodded. Dave shook his head at both of them.

"Oh uh Santana, I brought a friend for you to, you know…" he said, a smile appearing slowly on his face.

"Karofsky, s-stop trying to hook me up with girls, I told you I don't do girlfriends."

"Look, I'll just introduce you, beyond that it's totally up to you…" he said, raising his hands and backing off. "A small group of us are going up to my dad's game room, the pool table and Cuban cigars are up there if you want come along?"

"You had me at pool table and cigars, we'll be up in a minute" Santana said as Dave grinned and left into the living room.

"Wow" Brittany said suddenly as she stood up from her stool. She felt slightly dizzy, she turned around to Santana. "Are you OK?"

"Uh yeah _dipshit_, you're the one that stood up… you're a total lightweight" she mumbled as she stood too. She was also swaying slightly.

Brittany snorted.

"Looks like I'm not the only one"

"OK whatever…" Santana resigned shaking her head dismissively, she walked a few steps and held out her pinky again. "C'mon panda, you clearly needs help walking in a straight line…"

"Riiight" said Brittany rolling her eyes but gladly linking pinkies again. "I'm the one that needs help sure…yup, ok"

"You're so fucking annoying sometimes _blondie_" sighed Santana, pulling Brittany toward the kitchen door.

"So are you" Brittany shot back. "But that's OK cause I still like you" said Brittany smiling, swaying contently. She didn't even care if she said too much. Must be the alcohol. She suddenly just didn't care.

Santana turned around slowly and tilted her head to the side slightly.

"Why?" she asked simply, eyes narrowing skeptically.

"Dunno" Brittany shrugged swinging their linked pinkies.

That was a lie; she'd be here all night listing the things she liked about Santana, but it wasn't nearly as long as the things she didn't know about Santana either. Santana didn't say anything though.

"C'mon" Santana said tugging her into the hallway and leading her upstairs.

Santana seemed to know where she was going so Brittany just let her lead. She led them to an oak door upstairs and entered. The thudding from the music downstairs seemed muted and distant. There were a group of about 14 people in here and this was by far the coolest room Brittany ever seen. The room was dimly lit and the walls and floor were wooden; there was large comfy looking leather seats in front of a 50 inch plasma TV situated on the wall. There was a large pool table in the middle of the room and there was even a pinball machine in the corner. Sitting on a large leather sofa in front of them was Quinn, Puck, Mercedes, Karofsky and a few other people Brittany didn't recognize. Brittany grinned. These people seemed so nice and cool. People were nice. Especially Quinn.

"Quinn!" Brittany squealed suddenly feeling excited, letting go of Santana's pinky and rushing forward and collapsing onto Quinn's lap. Brittany wrapped her arms around Quinn's neck.

"There you are, I was looking for you I...Uh…Brittany, are you drunk?" Quinn asked raising an eyebrow and trying to keep the girl up steady on her lap. Mercedes laughed. Santana walked forward and stood in front of them arms crossed.

"No" Brittany said but nodded her head yes.

Quinn blinked at her.

"OK, uhm maybe a little, Santana and I were doing shot's you see-"

"You got her drunk?" Quinn interjected and glared up at Santana.

"I didn't 'get' her anything, she's got her own free will" Santana snarled. Quinn merely rolled her eyes.

It was weird, Brittany only felt a little tipsy. She didn't think she was drunk. Then again, if she were drunk, how would she know? Her giddy mood this evening was mostly because of Santana, she was drunk on Santana. Before she could stop herself she found her thoughts tumbling from her mouth.

"It's totally cool Quinn, I know you don't like Santana, but y'know I do, I really like her" Brittany said; she leaned in and whispered into Quinn's ear. "I mean I really, really, _really_ like her, she's cool right?" she whispered giggling slightly. It was supposed to be a secret but she now suddenly found it really funny.

Brittany pulled back to see Quinn glaring at Santana who had a smug smirk on her face.

"C'mon panda…we're playing pool" said Santana, it was more of a statement than an invitation.

"We are? Awesome" Brittany grinned standing up and tripping slightly. "I'm OK" she mumbled.

Brittany took this time to look around the room, three people were dancing; an Asian couple and a blonde boy with very large lips. There were another group huddled in the corner playing spin the bottle and laughing. Puck and Finn were playing an xbox game on the large plasma TV and there were a couple Brittany didn't recognize making out on the pinball machine in the corner. Eww. Brittany much preferred this small gathering though. Everything downstairs seemed so loud and busy.

"Take them off" Santana said looking to her gloves as they walked to the pool table. "The hat too, it's stupid" she continued, taking off her own small fur jacket and throwing it at Puck who seemed entirely unfazed.

"I think my hats cute" Brittany said jutting out her jaw.

"We're not playing if you wear that hat, it's distracting, the gloves too…off…you won't be able to hold the cue" she said throwing one to Brittany which she just managed to catch. "Speaking of which, you even know how to play _Blondie_?"

"Of course silly, I'm not _that _dumb" said Brittany brightly as she took off her gloves and hat, and ran a hand through her hair. She put them on a table next to Puck. "Besides…" she said as she rejoined Santana. "You probably don't have that much experience with balls, right?" the blonde grinned.

Santana frowned.

"Hold up, you just make a gay joke?"

"Maaaybe" Brittany said coyly shrugging a shoulder as she leaned over and took the first shot to break. She potted nothing.

"Hmprh, well I'm sure _you _have plenty of experience" Santana shot back.

"You don't know that…" Brittany said bluntly, walking around the table for a better view. That better view turned out to be Santana's ass as she bent over and took her shot. She potted a colored ball. Red. Funny, that red dress she wore clung way too tightly to her body, and Santana had the audacity to claim Brittany's hat was distracting.

"Educated guess…" Santana said shrugging as she leaned back up and walked around to take another shot. "You're a cheerio, blonde, hot but dumb…the fact that you're a cheerio alone makes the probability that you're a slut go up about 50 percent, at least."

Brittany huffed. A bit rich coming from an ex-cheerio. She bit her tongue though. Santana missed and it was Brittany's turn.

"Well…the way I see it is you're like your balls and I'm like mine" Brittany said airily, taking a shot and potting two striped balls at the same time. She smiled proudly. She looked up to Santana who had a bemused look on her face, either from Brittany's potting skills or her statement. Probably both.

"Care to elaborate _dipshit_?" she said irritably.

"Well like uhm…" Brittany paused and potted another ball. "Your balls are like all the one color right? So you like them only one kind of way…but mine…mine are striped, so it's colored but not colored too. I guess what I'm saying is I like them both; either way is cool with me. I like both sides" said Brittany steadily, staring across into brown eyes and hoping Santana would catch her drift.

Santana merely cleared her throat and nodded a little looking at the table blankly. She then shook her head.

"Yeah you still confuse me, you should come with a manual"

"Funny, my mom says the same thing" sighed Brittany as she potted her 6th ball in a row.

"How the fuck are you doing this _blondie?" _Santana whined, clearly annoyed she was losing.

"It's just a game Santana" Brittany said teasingly with a knowing smirk. She walked around to Santana's side and flicked her hair over her shoulder looking back at the Latina. She winked. Santana merely frowned back. Maybe it was the alcohol but Brittany was suddenly feeling like she could handle Santana, maybe even give her a taste of her own medicine.

Brittany quickly potted the 8-ball to win the game; she lay down the cue on the table where Santana still had 4 left to pot. Santana walked over to her and stopped right in front of her. Brittany held her breath as her eyes flickered to the Latina's plump lips; she blinked and tore her gaze away and directed it into her eyes instead. She didn't know which was more distracting. Santana chewed the inside of her mouth, clearly irritated at her loss. A smirk slowly grew though as she took in the blonde.

"Best of three?" she said darkly, her eyes also moving to the blonde's lips. Brittany gulped suddenly feeling cornered. She just nodded slowly.

"There's a major fight downstairs, it's pretty epic!" came the voice of a boy who entered the room and shouted. There was suddenly a stampede of footsteps running toward the door.

"I gotta see this" said Puck shoving by Brittany.

"Aww man, if anybody breaks anything my dad's gonna kill me" said Karofsky as he barraged his way through the crowd. Soon the entire room was empty minus Brittany and Santana. Brittany heard the sound of them all rushing downstairs.

"Pfft…assholes" said Santana rolling her eyes. Santana turned her back toward the pool table and began rearranging for their next game.

Brittany's heart was pounding. It was like her body reacted to an idea before it even entered her head. But then it did enter her head and she could suddenly think of nothing else. She was alone with Santana. She walked over to the door as quietly as possible and closed it over gently, hoping Santana wouldn't turn around. She never. Brittany carefully slipped out of her shoes and tip toed toward Santana from behind. Her mind was racing, her heart was beating. She was going to do it. She wasn't quite sure what 'it' was, but she was going to do it. Now or never. This feeling had been gnawing away at her for a week now.

"Alright be prepared to get your ass whipped panda as I'm about to-"

Santana suddenly stopped talking.

Brittany had wrapped her arms around Santana's waist from behind, her hands clasping at the front. She leaned a cheek into the back of Santana's shoulder and inhaled.

"Mhmm…" the blonde sighed contently. Holding Santana like this felt so good, she wanted to hold her tighter and closer. She had already gone this far so she may as well. Brittany's pulled Santana in closer and the Latina's ass met Brittany's center. She instantly felt that familiar jolt, the familiar dull throb between her legs; it was wonderful and frustrating all at the same time. She rocked her hips ever so slightly into Santana's ass, she had no idea what she was doing, but she needed the friction and was somehow getting release.

"You feel so good" Brittany mumbled against the material of Santana's dress. She felt Santana sigh and her shoulders relax slightly. Brittany pressed her hips harder into the back of Santana and couldn't stop the small noise of contentment that escaped her mouth. All too quickly though she felt the other girl's hands coming over her own and prying them apart. Santana turned around quickly to face the blonde; their heaving chests now unbearably close.

"What are you doing?" she asked. Her voice was uncharacteristically soft but she wore the familiar frown, she was searching Brittany's face for answers.

Brittany closed her eyes with embarrassment and balled the edge of her dress up with both fists, clenching hardly to take away this horrible feeling of impending rejection.

"Sorry, I did it again didn't I? It's just…" Brittany paused to open her eyes again. Santana was looking at her like she never had before, like she was actually listening. "You make me feel so…"

Santana raised a hand to silence her.

"Don't finish that sentence _Blondie_" she snapped and Brittany could sense the Latina's defenses coming back up. "Look, you're drunk and I'm a hot piece of ass…and my tits are pretty spectacular too" she said folding her arms and nodding her head as if agreeing with her own statement. "But whatever it is you're trying to do, it ain't gonna happen, we clear?"

Santana pushed herself away from leaning on the pool table and headed toward the door.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Brittany pouted, quickly putting her shoes back on.

"Home" said Santana simply, opening the door.

"Wait…what about our pool game?" the blonde said confused and hurt as she quickly grabbed her gloves and hat from the table.

"You won" Santana said almost sadly, looking her up and down and exiting the room.

"Wait…" said Brittany as she clambered into the hallway, the music from downstairs now pulsating through her skin once more. Santana was already at the bottom of the stairs and heading toward the front door. Brittany ran down almost tripping to keep up with her. They entered the large front yard where most cars were still parked scattered over the lawn. Santana was striding away a few feet in front of her.

"Santana, you can't drive you've been drinking" said Brittany pulling her hat back on and putting her gloves on awkwardly whilst still trying to keep up with Santana.

"I'll walk" the other girl shouted over her shoulder as she left the allotment and began walking down the street. It was really dark. Brittany wondered what time it was.

"Then I'm coming with you" Brittany called back, speeding up her strides.

"No you're not"

"Yes I am"

"No you're not" Santana stopped and spun around. "Seriously leave me the fuck alone"

"But I…I just wanna walk you home" said Brittany finally catching up to her.

"And how will you get home after that?" Santana asked flatly, raising an eyebrow. Her eyes looked darker in the moonlight.

"Well…maybe I could crash at yours?" Brittany asked uncertainly, tucking her hair behind her ears.

"Nuh uh" Santana said giving a low laugh and shaking her head. "I'm leaving now"

"And I'm accompanying you" said Brittany simply, walking closely behind Santana.

"No…" Santana began irritably "what _you're _doing is stalking me, I believe that's the correct term."

"Oh…" Brittany said slowly in realization. "Well I guess that's sorta OK right? I mean like panda's stalk their prey all the time, don't they? Or is that lions…" the blonde pondered. "Either way, although but no I only have a panda hat I don't really have a lion hat, I mean that would look silly, right?" she said laughing slightly. "I once went to the zoo with my mom when I was a kid and it was pretty boring but we seen a lion and it was pretty scary. You're sorta like a lion, well maybe more like a tiger, you're like sneaky and scary but then like I imagine you would be pretty cool in your own habitat. Oh! I also like ducks, they're my favorite animal cause their quacks don't echo and they eat bread, I like bread too, y'know my mom once told me that I-"

"Oh. My. God" Santana sighed out exasperated, cutting Brittany off. She stopped and turned to Brittany again, who quickly stopped in her tracks so she didn't run into the other girl.

"If I agree to let you stay, will you shut the fuck up and like stop talking? You're giving me a headache" Santana grumbled rubbing a hand over her forehead.

Brittany's eye's bulged. She nodded her head frantically.

"Hurry up then" Santana sighed in resignation.

As soon as her back turned Brittany couldn't fight the grin that came across her face. She skipped forward and reached for Santana's pinky almost instinctively. Santana frowned down at their hands and looked back up to Brittany then simply rolled her eyes. She didn't let go though.

"Tingly" Brittany giggled.

"What?" Santana snapped, frowning in confusion.

"Nothing" Brittany said quickly, forgetting she wasn't allowed to talk.

For once she wished her brain would think about things before saying stuff or acting on impulses. Then again she probably wouldn't be going to Santana's house if it weren't for her brain. It really was both a blessing and a curse.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the delay but this chapter runs to just about 8500** **words, so technically you're getting 2 and a half chapters for the price of one! :P** **I'm not too sure about how this one turned out though, so let me know what you think.**

"Are we there yet?" Brittany groaned impatiently, swinging their interlinked pinkies animatedly.

"Well you've asked that about twenty freakin' times in the last ten minutes so you were bound to be right eventually" Santana deadpanned tugging her by the pinky up the driveway to her house.

"Oh…" Brittany said realizing they were in fact here.

She couldn't help but raise her eyebrows at the flashy red sports car parked in the driveway. Distracted, Brittany tumbled over almost taking Santana to the ground with her. Her knee hit the gravely stone as it began to bleed. It quickly became really stingy and sore.

"Ouch, I always seem to fall around you" Brittany groaned. "Also I don't quite know how to say this but uhm, I like…uh…I'm not all that great with blood, I mean I'm pretty sure I've fainted every time I've seen it…even on the TV…" she admitted sheepishly.

"Eugh…" began Santana rolling her eyes and pulling Brittany to her feet. "Just come on, I'll clean it up for you just don't look down or anything."

They walked up (or Brittany limped rather) to the porch that was lit dully by a wall light. Again Brittany found herself staring at Santana's ass when she bent over and extracted a key from underneath a plant pot by the door. Brittany then internally slapped herself for what she tried to do to that ass not twenty minutes ago. She shook her head. Why did she have to be so stupid?

"Y'know that's kinda unsafe cause like anybody could find that key and steal stuff from your house. I mean, underneath a plant pot? That isn't exactly original or anything" said Brittany as Santana stood up and began to unlock the door.

"Yeah well…the day I take home security advice from a girl that can't tell her left from her right is the day I fucking slit my wrists" Santana snapped back, opening the door quickly.

Brittany pouted.

Santana's shoulders slumped as she turned slowly back to look at the blonde.

"Sorry, I just…c'mon in" Santana sighed looking defeated, motioning her arm for Brittany to walk over the threshold.

Brittany wondered what made Santana angry and mad at the world sometimes, mad at _her_ sometimes. Brittany was beginning to realize that it wasn't merely curiosity anymore, she wanted to know so she could help, so she could take Santana's anger or hurt away. Brittany bit her bottom lip. She could no longer keep calling this a 'silly crush', what it was though, Brittany didn't know. A week. They had only known each other a week. Brittany kept repeating this mantra in her head.

They both walked into the warmth of the house. Santana closed the door and took off her shoes leaving them by the door. Brittany did the same with hers as best she could without looking down. Brittany took a quick look around, the hall led openly into both the dining room and living room. Santana's house was nice, spacious but not too big like Quinns house. Creams, browns, reds and yellows were dashed about the place, on the sofa's, wallpaper, and pictures on the wall etc. – the house seemed warm and homely.

"Here" said Santana as she took Brittany's hands and removed her gloves. Brittany watched her intently as both her hands came up to take off her hat too. She put them on the hanger by the door.

"Kitchen's back this way" said Santana as Brittany limped after her meekly.

They entered a relatively small but cozy kitchen, Santana patted the marble kitchen counter indicating for Brittany to hop up. Brittany winced as she pulled her own body weight up and sat on the counter, she momentarily glanced down and saw red and quickly looked back up.

"God, please Santana help me" whined Brittany, grasping the edge of the counter and staring at the ceiling, not daring to look down at her leg again. She heard Santana chuckle, possibly at how dramatically desperate she sounded. Brittany's eyes lowered and met deep brown.

"Do something"

"All right, chillax _Blondie_" said Santana as she switched the kettle on and extracted something from one of the top drawers. It looked like some antiseptic wipes and a plaster. Santana walked over and stood in front of her.

"Uh, this may sting a little" said Santana apologetically. Brittany just nodded at the ceiling, eyes shut, bracing herself.

Brittany felt Santana gently put her hand under her knee and raised her leg a little. Brittany's leg muscles tightened. The dancer's head snapped back down and locked eyes with Santana's.

"Did…did I hurt you?" Santana asked sounding uncertain. Brittany swallowed and shook her head.

"Your hands just…" Brittany trailed her words as she bit her lower lip. "Cold" she finished.

"Oh…sorry" fumbled Santana as she looked back down and began to wipe away the blood that had trickled down the blonde's leg.

"It's OK, it feels good…your hand that is" said Brittany quietly as if what she were divulging was some sort of secret. Santana, perhaps suddenly wanting to be free of the sudden tension, pressed the antiseptic wipe flatly against the open wound.

"Ouch! Ow! Ow!" hissed Brittany closing her eyes once more. It was painful.

"Baby" mumbled Santana disparagingly.

Brittany stopped whining and shot Santana a scowl. Santana slowly smirked as she dabbed the rest of the blood away, then placed a plaster over the cut.

"You know I'm not an idiot, I dunno, I just don't like blood" said Brittany defensively.

"Whatever…" shrugged the Latina.

"Yeah well…" huffed the blonde, crossing her arms childishly and looking away moodily. She didn't want Santana thinking she was a big baby.

"You're cute when you're mad…" Santana said chuckling shaking her head. Her eyes widened a little as if realizing what she just said. After a moment she just shrugged though, her fingers still smoothing the edges of the plaster even through Brittany was pretty sure the plaster was securely on.

Brittany's heart almost came barraging through her ribcage. Holy crap. Santana thought she was cute? Was that why Santana was mean to her? Brittany thought that was silly and if nothing slightly sadistic. That can't be it. Whatever the case, Brittany was ecstatic. Santana thought she was cute. Cute. How cute though? She needed to know. Santana's quick shift in moods were beginning to confuse her more than usual; with Brittany it was like the Latina was hot one minute and cold the next. It was frustrating.

"Spill it" said Santana.

"Spill what?" the blonde asked looking around the counter confused.

"No I mean…" Santana said shaking her head in disbelief. "I mean spill it, what's up? You have that look about you, like you're about to ask one of your dumb ass questions."

Brittany slumped her shoulders and jutted out her jaw. Santana was still smoothing over the plaster on her knee.

"Not a question really, but I was just thinking…about you…" Brittany began and took a breath. Santana looked up at her, eyes wide with curiosity, it was a look Brittany never seen before. "Well…" Brittany dragged out. "You're sorta an oxymoron…"

Santana raised an eyebrow, a small smile on her face.

"That's a big word there _Blondie_"

"Funny…" Brittany said dryly. "It's just, I mean uhm one minute you're pulling my chair away and calling me names and the next you're holding my drink, holding my pinky and uhm…" she trailed, clearing her throat and looking down at Santana's hand that had all but began massaging over the plaster. "Patching me up" she finished, smiling slightly.

"I'm not seeing your point" Santana said quickly, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"You confuse me"

Santana gave a hollow laugh.

"Yeah well ain't no need to worry about that _Blondie_, I've confused a few 'straight' girls in my time" she said sassily, finger quoting the word 'straight'.

"Uhm no you misunderstood…" began Brittany shaking her head. "I've always liked girls, you being a girl isn't confusing, in fact it's like probably the least confusing thing about you…" she said laughing softly. "_You _confuse me, and I dunno why it bothers me so much but you do" she said shrugging.

Santana just stood there staring down at the blonde's knee, resuming drawing circles over Brittany's plaster with her thumb. Santana briefly poked out her tongue and ran it along her lower lip. Brittany simply stared. She'd give anything to just lean down and press her own lips against Santana's right now. That thought spilled from her mouth before she could stop herself.

"Kiss me" Brittany said quietly, her heart pounding. Crap.

Santana's head shot up and searched her eyes briefly. She stopped her hand movements and shook her head slowly.

"Please…" Brittany said, almost whispering.

Santana gazed at her for a moment, her eyes unmoving, unblinking. Then with one of her hands still cupped around the back of Brittany's knee, she raised it slightly, lowered her head and planted a delicate kiss over the plaster on her knee. It was fleeting. Brittany rolled her eyes and giggled as Santana came back up.

"Not what you had in mind?" Santana said, a genuine smile on her face.

Brittany felt that breathless way again, the same way she usually did when Santana smiled like that at her. She felt like it was a special smile, a secret smile, reserved only for her. What did this mean though? Was Santana OK with this? Was it OK to kiss her?

"I imagined it a little higher" Brittany said smiling coyly.

"Higher, huh?" said Santana pouting, impressed. "You mean like…" she trailed and lowered her head again to press another kiss on her plaster. Before Brittany could object to say that wasn't much higher, the Latina began trailing soft, warm kisses up her leg. The blonde felt plump lips place feathery light kisses on her knee. Just above her knee. Her lower thigh. Oh crap. Santana was slowly going higher and higher. Brittany's leg was twitching with each kiss.

"Oh my god…" Brittany let out a shaky breath.

"Mhmm" she felt Santana smirk against her inner thigh. "High enough yet?"

Brittany shook her head frantically unable to form words, then remembered Santana wasn't looking at her to see a response, if she was even interested in one.

Santana's kisses were so feather light that it was almost tickly, Brittany desperately spread her legs a little, making more room for her. Each soft kiss left a tingle in its wake. Kiss. Tingle. Kiss. Tingle. Kiss. Tingle. Brittany let out a contented sigh. Santana reached the bottom of Brittany's dress where she could go no higher, and planted a more forceful kiss there, her lips fully planted on skin. She then moved across and started kissing her other thigh.

"Ugh…" Brittany felt escape from the back of her throat as she leaned her head back.

Kissing should never feel this good she thought as the faint dull throb between her legs started to pulsate almost in time to her heartbeat, annoying her no end. She cleared her throat and was suddenly aware of the reality of the situation. Brittany sitting on the kitchen counter, legs spread with Santana placing kisses between her legs.

"Uh…Santana is…is there…anybody else here? Your parents?" she asked, her voice sounding much lower than usual. She almost regretted asking because Santana stopped kissing and came back up, she missed the feeling of the other girl's lips immediately.

"I don't have a dad…" said Santana quickly, her face blank. Brittany almost cursed herself for not remembering what Quinn told her about Santana's dad abandoning her when she was four or something. She quickly tried to bypass the topic.

"Your mom?"

"My mom's uh…" began Santana, her eyes shifting to the side. "At work, she won't be back for a long while. It's just us. We're alone."

Just us. Alone. This seemed to echo around in Brittany's mind, and with a new-found determination was sure in what she was going to do. She shifted her weight and pulled up her dress on each side so her dress was crumpled around her stomach, exposing herself from the waist down entirely to Santana, her underwear on full display. Her ass felt cold on the marble of the counter, she didn't care though. Maybe the drink was still lingering in her or maybe it was Santana, but she certainly felt more reckless than usual tonight.

"Then I think you should keep going" she said, her voice sounding much more lustful than she intended.

Santana, much to Brittany's surprise didn't hesitate in returning her head between Brittany's legs and began peppering small kisses on her thigh moving upward and upward. Oh. My. God. This was actually happening. Brittany couldn't believe this was happening. She suddenly felt nervous and self-conscious. Santana wrapped both her arms around and grabbed Brittany by the ass, sliding her more toward the edge of the counter. Brittany watched as the other girl's mouth latched onto her hipbone then began trailing the same small kisses along her lower stomach. The closer she got to the middle the more ragged Brittany's breathing became. Oh god. This was really happening.

Santana began kissing downwards over the cotton material of Brittany's underwear. Brittany gasped as Santana' mouth was hovering dangerously over her sex, separated by a mere thin layer of material. She felt Santana suddenly inhale sharply.

"Fuck…" the Latina groaned as she exhaled, her warm breath dancing over Brittany's skin.

Brittany's mouth fell open as she felt warmth pool between her legs and couldn't help herself when her hips started rocking upwards into Santana's face by their own accord, needing some sort of friction.

Santana suddenly pulled back and stood up, her eye's darting between Brittany's and between the blonde's legs.

"Fuck" she said again, but her tone was different this time, laced with confliction. Brittany was suddenly worried and confused.

"D-did I do something wrong?" asked Brittany tentatively, her voice sounding a little shaky.

"Huh? Uh…no…" Santana hesitated, her eyes not leaving the space between Brittany's legs. Brittany felt herself blush as Santana licked her lips.

"This isn't a good idea" Santana said suddenly tearing her gaze away and looking Brittany in the eye.

"What? Why?" asked Brittany feeling even more confused. She must have done something wrong.

"Look…" Santana began, her frown returning. "You're hot, OK? I get that. It's just, we see each other everyday and will for the next year and I just…I don't do that…"

"Do what?" asked Brittany scrunching her face up, now she definitely was confused.

Santana whined impatiently as if Brittany should understand what she was trying to say.

"It's just…look, if you were a stranger and we just met? Then hells yeah we'd have already fucked last week-"

"But we just met last week" Brittany interjected.

"_Exactly_" Santana said. "In case you haven't noticed _Blondie _I like to be on my own, it's just how I roll, k? I don't want a damn girlfriend, hells I don't want a friend, I don't need any of that, and I don't do any of that…just…us doing the deed? It would just make it weirder in class for both of us. Besides, you already _clearly_ have this fucking misguided hero-worship thing going on with me-"

"No I don't" Brittany said bluntly. Was that what this was?

Santana sighed. There was a brief moment of silence.

"Santana you can't just change your mind, that's mean, what about my itch?" Brittany asked pouting.

"Your…what?" Santana frowned as she began pacing the kitchen floor, doing a double take at Brittany's words.

Oh boy. This would require Brittany using words to describe how she felt and she wasn't sure if it was going to come out the right way or in the right order, but she had nothing to lose now.

"Well like uhm, OK so here it is – I like you. Honestly? I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since we met…" she trailed her words and looked to Santana who had stopped pacing and was simply looking back at her, expressionless. "So like please don't be mad or anything, it's probably just a crush…" she continued, shrugging trying to appear nonchalant. "But it's like I like you so much it's itchy…"

Now Santana was frowning.

"Uhm, boy I'm not explaining it very well…you see when I'm sitting next to you, and even when I'm not with you I feel like you're all I can think about, so it's like I have this constant itch that I can't seem to quite scratch, and then when I am around you I totally act crazy, I mean falling over, slapping you, taking that many shots…I don't do that stuff normally…it's not how I roll…" she said mimicking Santana's earlier words.

Santana smiled at that. Brittany's breathing hitched. She had to get used to seeing that smile, she couldn't flail _every_ time it happened. She shook her head trying to concentrate.

"I want you like I want to itch a scratch, you're my itch…does that make sense?" Brittany asked innocently, cocking her head to the side. She hoped she had made sense.

"OK…" Santana said slowly, walking back toward her with a smirk on her face and a glint in her eye. Brittany gulped and couldn't help the small smile tug at her lips. "How about…" Santana said, her voice an octave lower than usual. "I help you scratch that itch out?"

"W-what do you mean?" Brittany asked, her heart racing again and her hands feeling clammy. She gripped onto the edge of the counter and watched Santana trail her fingers up and down her calves. The tingles were back.

"We don't have to do anything much really but…I can help you out" she said, her tongue running playfully along her top lip.

Brittany felt giddy but she didn't understand. Help her with what?

Santana rolled her eyes and outstretched her hand. Brittany took it and hopped down off the counter. Santana leaned into her side.

"I'll show you" she husked into Brittany's ear.

Brittany felt her cheeks burn and the burning throb between her legs return. Santana led her across the kitchen and pushed the blonde lightly against the wall, a smirk on her face and a dark look in her eye. Brittany glanced at the girl's lips and couldn't stand it anymore, she leaned forward to kiss Santana but the Latina stopped her.

"Nuh uh" she said leaning her head away, smirk still in place.

Brittany wondered what she was thinking.

"Hike your dress back up" Santana said, standing back folding her arms as if observing her. Brittany didn't know what was going on, but she didn't need to be asked twice. She quickly lifted her dress.

Santana strode forward her hips swaying mesmerizingly from side to side. Before Brittany could register anything but the look in her eye, Santana hooked her fingers around the edge of Brittany's underwear and pulled them down quickly that they fell around her ankles. Brittany gasped and quickly threw her hands over her front instinctively, shielding herself.

"Santana…I…I haven't really done this before, y'know like…with another girl" she stammered out.

"Well…" Santana began lowly. "I told you we ain't going to be doing anything, I'm just going to…help you out a little" she said smiling; she almost sounded innocent. "Think of it as one person…helping out another" she smirked making a hand motion between them.

Brittany bit her lower lip nervously. Her heart was racing, her body was buzzing. She didn't know what Santana was doing but she'd play along. She relaxed against the wall and moved her hands balling them into fists at her side not knowing what else to do with them. Santana's smirk grew a little wider as she gazed down between Brittany's legs, now fully on display. Brittany felt her cheeks burn. It suddenly felt very hot in here.

Santana walked forward till she was standing incredibly close. Brittany jolted when their bare thighs met momentarily. Santana's dress was criminally short.

"Spread your legs" she said thickly her eyes glowering into her own.

Brittany did as she was told. She's pretty sure she'd do anything Santana said right now with her looking at her like that. Santana leaned forward into her; their bodies flush against each other. Brittany's breathing hitched as Santana tilted her head and nuzzled into her neck, her lips ghosting her skin there.

"What are you do-"

Brittany's words caught in her throat as Santana raised one of her thighs in-between Brittany's legs so her knee was up pressing into the wall. Brittany's wet and throbbing sex came into contact with the smooth warm skin of Santana's thigh. Brittany's mouth fell further open, wanting to say something, but only strangled sounds of pleasure came out. Santana began to rock her hips up into Brittany, her thigh applying pressure.

"Oh my…" Brittany began but couldn't formulate any sentences. She could have sworn she felt Santana chuckle into the skin of her neck. Brittany put both her arms around Santana; clutching and balling at the material of her dress at the back. She nuzzled her head into Santana's neck the same way the other girl had hers. She held on almost for life.

"Don't stop…" she pleaded as waves of pleasure ran through her with every upward thrust the Latina made.

Santana was everywhere but it wasn't enough, Brittany began grinding down onto her thigh, soon both moving in tandem creating a perfect rhythm.

"Fuck…" Brittany moaned unable to control her breathing as her hips grinded down onto Santana's thigh needing the friction. Santana felt wonderful.

Brittany felt her center sliding up and down Santana's thigh, her folds parting willingly and her clit throbbing against skin, she was getting wetter and wetter as sweat formed from every pore in her body as she ground down as Santana rocked up. This was pleasure. This was perfect. They were perfect together. Brittany felt a knot in her lower stomach form, her muscles compressing at the feeling of build-up.

"Santana…" she whimpered. She wanted to kiss Santana, wanted to do the same to her, but she couldn't concentrate on anything else. Everything was spinning.

"You're so wet…" Santana husked into her ear; her hot breath creating a path of goosebumps down her skin. Brittany just nodded, giving a shaky moan.

"I almost feel embarrassed for you…almost" smirked Santana into the skin of her neck, her lips still ghosting skin but never kissing.

Santana began clenching her thigh muscle, creating a pulsating sensation against Brittany's swollen clit.

"Oh my…fuck…keep doing that" Brittany stuttered out between uneven breaths from rocking down onto Santana's thigh.

She felt the knot in her lower stomach get tighter and tighter.

"Santana I'm gonna…I…"

Santana thrust upwards in quick successions, her muscles clenching and unclenching – and that's all it took. Brittany's eyes snapped open as the knot in her stomach finally reached breaking point, her skin burned everywhere as the throbbing between her legs peaked and tingled. She clenched Santana's leg between her own like a vice grip as her own legs turned to jelly, trembling in pleasure. She shook a bit as Santana held her up, letting her waves of pleasure subside. After a minute of just standing there, Brittany tried somewhat control her ragged breathing. Santana pulled her thigh down, her skin tearing away from the moistness of Brittany's sex and stepped away looking at Brittany with a small smile.

Brittany stood there; numb but feeling. She tried to steady her breathing. She shifted her leg but they still felt like jelly. Santana had a jubilant smirk on her face as she bent down, hooked her fingers around Brittany's underwear and slowly pulled them back up her long legs; once they were back on, Santana tugged them up a little more roughly, the material pushing into Brittany's still sensitive sex. She bit her lower lip harshly.

"Well…" smirked Santana, looking thoroughly pleased with herself. "That was…classy" she winked.

Brittany laughed awkwardly, still feeling flushed and exhausted slightly.

"You want-" Brittany said but her voice came out high and squeaky, she cleared her throat as Santana's smirk grew. "You want me to uhm…" Brittany trailed looking down the Latina's body nervously "y'know…do you?" she asked.

Santana just laughed softly as she leaned back and draped her arms along the counter. She seemed amused at Brittany's offering. Brittany didn't know what she found so funny.

"That's cute…" sighed Santana smirking. "But I'm good, although I gots to be honest _Blondie, _you being a dancer and having all that stamina, I thought you would have lasted a _little_ longer" she mocked.

Brittany blushed as she looked to the ground.

"Sorry…" she mumbled as she began tracing a circle with her foot.

She momentarily thought back to a conversation she overheard Puck and Santana have last week in class, she heard the way Santana made fun of another girl. Was Santana going to tell Puck how easy she was? Were they going to laugh at her behind her back?

"Relax, I'm kidding" said Santana almost as if she sensed Brittany's insecurities.

"Oh..." Brittany smiled sheepishly back.

"Sooo…" Santana said slowly walking her fingers along the counter playfully. "Are you going to clean up the mess you made, or what?" she said motioning her head downward. She raised her thigh and Brittany felt herself blush as the light bounced of her skin, showing a wet trail along the other girl's thigh.

"Right…" Brittany said, finally tugging her dress back down and stepping toward Santana, she grabbed a corner of it and went to wipe the other girls thigh when…

"No" came Santana's voice.

"No?" Brittany asked confused.

"I meant clean it up…with your tongue" Santana said darkly, her smirk growing wider.

"I…uh…"

"What…is that a problem?" she asked sharply, frowning.

Brittany gulped; Santana was being a weird blend of sexy and scary right now.

"Uh no, no problem" she said as she kneeled down in front of Santana, her heart pounding in her ears. She realized she was about to taste _herself _on Santana. Crap. She hoped she didn't screw this up. She closed her eyes, licked her lips and leaned forward to…

"No" came Santana's voice again.

Brittany stilled her tongue that hadn't quite reached skin yet. She felt a warm tingly sensation on her head; then realized Santana's hand had come down and ran a hand through her hair, leaving it placed on the back of her head, tugging slightly on blonde locks.

"Look at me when you do it" she said throatily.

Brittany nearly imploded at that. She felt her own want coming back; the itch. How could one person have this effect on her? She didn't understand. She glanced up and maintained eye contact as she ran her tongue slowly up Santana's thigh. Santana sighed, as the grip on Brittany's hair grew tighter. Santana's breathing became uneven just like Brittany's had been. Did she really have that effect on the other girl? This was awesome. Brittany quickly ran her tongue back down then back up again with more purpose. Santana had kissed her; maybe she should do the same? She was totally going to do this. She placed a small kiss at the top of her thigh; she was about to place another when…

"I think you've cleaned up now, wouldn't want you having _too_ much fun, would we?" Santana said cocking an eyebrow down at her and letting go of her hair. Brittany slowly stood up feeling disappointed; she wanted to see what other sounds she could elicit from the girl.

"C'mon, I originally came in here to put a plaster on you and make us hot chocolate you know…" said Santana walking back toward the kettle and putting it back on. She spoke like what they just done was nothing more than a minor inconvenience.

Brittany walked forward after her, her legs still feeling a little shaky.

"Hot chocolate?" smiled Brittany inquiringly.

Santana turned around and nodded.

"It helps me sleep"

"Really? Cause I totally have trouble sleeping too, I usually sleep with my dads hat beside me, it smells like him so I dunno, I just sleep better."

Santana just smiled a little back in response.

They spent a few minutes standing in the kitchen, drinking their hot chocolates in silence. Brittany didn't know what to say, Santana was acting so normal considering what they just done.

"C'mon we should go to bed" Santana said.

Brittany's eye's bulged.

"To sleep" Santana clarified rolling her eyes and offering her pinky once more.

Brittany linked her own pinky with Santana's and let her lead as has become custom of tonight. She wasn't entirely sure what this gesture meant, if anything, but she was pretty sure Santana didn't do it with many people, if anyone at all. It was a thing that just happened. Brittany smiled. Maybe it could be their thing.

Santana led Brittany up to her bedroom. The blonde wasn't surprised to see the room was black sprawled with leather and obscure ornaments. It was sort of how she imagined Santana's room to look. Santana lent her a tank top and some shorts to wear as the other girl went into the bathroom to change. Brittany was already lying on her back on one side of the bed when Santana came back in, wearing the same tank top and short combination Brittany was.

"Fucking Karofsky having a party on a Sunday, douchebag, fucking 3:30am" mumbled Santana as she pulled back the covers and slumped into bed, she turned away from Brittany so her back was to her.

"We like have to get up in a few hours for school" Brittany grumbled.

"Screw that, I ain't going in, I needs my beauty sleep"

"W-what? You're not going to school tomorrow?" asked Brittany, a sinking feeling of disappointment in her stomach. That meant no Santana in English. She had sort of gotten used to sharing their book.

"Nope…can't be bothered…"

"Oh…"

"Although…" Santana said turning around to face her. Brittany could only make out her eyes in the darkness. "Feel free to join me _Blondie_, we could make a day of it" her tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Mhmm, I've never really skipped school before" the blonde pondered. What harm could skipping one day do?

"Why doesn't _that _surprise me?"

Brittany didn't need the room to be lit to know Santana probably rolled her eyes.

"OK, deal. We can hang out" Brittany said chirpily, now suddenly feeling excited about tomorrow. A day. A whole day with Santana. No teachers, no classroom, nobody but them. Brittany finally felt her exhaustion catch up with her as her eyelids grew heavy. She yawned.

"Hey Santana?" she spoke into the darkness.

"Mhmm?" came Santana's voice sounding half-asleep herself.

"Does this mean we're friends now?" she asked shyly.

No answer. There was a prolonged moment of silence.

"I'll think about it" Santana spoke eventually, her voice muffled slightly by her pillow.

Brittany grinned almost from ear to ear and rolled over, her eyes closing contently. Tomorrow was going to be awesome. Tomorrow was going to be the first day that her and Santana were maybe friends. Maybe.

Brittany stirred then rolled over, her arm reaching for a body next to her but none was there. She felt light hit the lids of her eyes and struggled to open them. Bright sunlight was beaming in from Santana's window. Crap. It was morning already. Brittany dragged herself from bed and stumbled downstairs still feeling half-asleep. She peeked into the living room, the TV was on but nobody was there. She walked back to the kitchen; Santana was in here. The girl had her back to Brittany and was plugging in a toaster to the wall.

"Hey…what time is it?" Brittany asked, her voice thick with sleep.

"Half ten" Santana said over her shoulder. "You want some toast?"

"Yeah…thanks" Brittany smiled and walked closer her hand sliding along the worktop. Then she remembered what they were almost doing on that worktop last night. She cleared her throat.

"So…isn't your mom back from work or something?"

"Uh…no" Santana said turning around.

Her eye makeup was smudged at the side slightly and she looked tired. Brittany thought she looked kind of cute though.

"So she like works nightshifts or…?" Brittany inquired, confused.

"Something like that" sighed Santana.

Brittany frowned. She was being incredibly vague. Then again, that was nothing new with Santana. Brittany sensed she should change the topic.

"Uhm before we do anything today, can you take me to my house? I want to get dressed and get a shower and stuff, plus I left my mobile phone there"

"Whatever. I'm not technically supposed to drive my mom's car but…" she said then shrugged. "It's not a problem or anything. I'll take it anyway."

"Yeah you don't strike me as the rule obeying kind" Brittany said teasingly.

Santana just gave a weak smile.

Brittany waited as Santana showered and got dressed in light jean shorts and a top; she had put sandals on, as it was incredibly warm out.

"You ready?" she asked nudging aviator sunglasses further up her nose.

"Yeah…" said Brittany distracted. Was Santana always this damn attractive?

She felt silly running out quickly to the car dressed in nothing but socks, shorts and a tank top, her clothes in one hand and her shoes in the other. The sun was beating down incredibly hard; this summer was by far the hottest. This car was also by far the coolest she had ever been in; she almost didn't want to move in fear of breaking anything. This car just screamed 'I have money', Brittany wasn't surprised that Santana's mom didn't let her drive it. She gave directions to her house, they didn't live that far apart, still Brittany was thankful for the ride, she didn't want to walk home in this heat. The car journey was spent mostly in silence; a silence broken by Brittany singing rather loudly along to the radio and Santana just shaking her head. Santana pulled up Brittany's driveway. Brittany quickly got out.

"I'll be super quick…20 minutes tops" she said through the open window and sprinting to her house.

"Whatever…"

Brittany ran into her house as fast as she could and was about to bolt upstairs when her mom cleared her throat from the living room.

"Where have you been and why aren't you at school?"

Brittany sighed and walked into the living room.

"I told you Quinn and I went to a party, but then it was late so I went back to Santana's…"

"Santana? Who's he? Do you have a boyfriend? I'd rather you tell me these things" her mom said sternly narrowing her eyes.

"No mom…" groaned Brittany "Santana's a girl, and she's my…friend" Brittany hesitated. It felt odd to say that out loud, she didn't even know if it was technically true. "She just dropped me off so I can get a quick shower and stuff, then I'm going back to hers…"

"Dropped you off?" her mom said quickly, standing up and walking over to the window. She peered through the blinds pryingly.

"Hmrph…" came her mom's voice unimpressed. "Sweetie, I know I said try make new friends but I don't like the look of this one"

"Huh?" asked Brittany confused, walking over to the window and peering out.

Brittany had to stifle a laugh when she seen Santana had left the car and was now lying back lazily, sunbathing on the hood of the car, smoking a cigarette and blowing out circles hoops in the air above her casually. From this angle she could almost see up the girls denim shorts. She had to disagree with her mom. She liked the look of Santana very much.

"It isn't funny, did she steal that car?" her mother asked seriously.

"What? No…you're being silly besides-"

"And could that top be any tighter!" her mother interjected, literally clutching the pearls around her neck. "You know dear, I don't want you hanging around with sluts, people will talk…"

Brittany didn't see the problem, she was practically wearing the same amount Santana was.

"You don't even know her…" Brittany said starting to feel mad. Then again, Brittany didn't know her either, but she knew her more than her mom did and she didn't like it when people judged others without getting to know them.

"Whatever, I'm away to get a shower then I'm leaving."

"No you're not, I don't want you around that one" her mom said sternly.

"You can't tell me who to be friends with anymore mom, I'm eighteen" she huffed and spun around quickly and left. She ran upstairs quickly not wanting to deal with her mom any longer.

She took a shower and dried her hair as quickly as she could. She put a little makeup on and some sunscreen, as she was prone to burning. She wore short denim shorts, her favorite pair with the suspenders attached and a yellow t-shirt with a cartoon duck on it. She slipped on sandals like Santana had been wearing; it was way too warm to even be wearing socks in this weather. Half an hour later and she was speeding downstairs eager to get back to Santana.

"Brittany wait" her mom called as she tried to sneak past the living room.

"Look I don't really wanna talk about this, I'm going now-"

"No it's not that, I meant to tell you when you first came in but we got…side tracked" her mom said side-eyeing the window. "But I have good news…" she said, a tired smile spreading across her face.

"A-about dad?" Brittany asked eagerly bouncing up and down on the spot.

"Yes about your father…he's coming home next week!" she said.

"What? Next week! Oh my god…oh but wait…how long for?" she asked, trying not to get her hopes up.

"He doesn't know but he thinks at least a few weeks!"

"Awesome" Brittany squealed. A few weeks, that was a long time. Her dad wasn't normally back for long before he was called back out on a tour of duty. This day was just getting better and better. She had to tell Santana.

"Bye mom!" the blonde shouted over her shoulder as she ran out the door before her mom could respond.

"Hey Santana…Santana…Santana" she sang as she galloped toward the car.

"What…what…what?" Santana said back sarcastically, sounding uninterested as she flung her cigarette on the ground and hoped off the car.

"Guess what? My dad's coming home next week! Isn't that cool?" she said dizzily.

"Aaaand I should care because…?" deadpanned Santana raising an eyebrow.

"No reason I guess…" Brittany shrugged.

"C'mon" she mumbled as they both entered the car.

When they got back to Santana's, Brittany went to go through the front door but Santana was at the side of the house.

"This way" she said, motioning her head up the side path.

Confused but curious Brittany followed her around the house to her backyard. The lawn was bright green and there was a small pool at the side. She wished her garden was this cool. She quickly became distracted by something much more noteworthy. Right at the back end of the garden was a large oak tree; it wasn't very tall but it was thick and sturdy, it's leaves and branches sprawling over the fence to the neighbor's garden. But it wasn't just the tree that was impressive; it was what was in it – a tree house. There was a wooden tree house with a doorway and windows and rope ladder and everything. Brittany's jaw hit the ground.

"An actual tree house! That is so awesome" Brittany said gaping at Santana.

"Thought you'd like it" said Santana smiling.

"Like it? I love it! C-can…can we go up?" she asked uncertainly.

"Duh, that's why I brought you back here _dipshit_" said Santana, she was probably rolling her eyes but Brittany couldn't tell because of her shades.

"Yay" Brittany sang as she practically ran toward the tree climbing the rope. Once she got to the top she clamored in. It was the size of a modest room, there was a large rug covering most of the floor, a few boxes and shelves of various things and two sleeping bags in the corner. There was a guitar lying by the door and the windows even had mini curtains.

"This is totally awesome" breathed Brittany still in awe. She wanted to live up here.

Santana arrived behind her.

Brittany spun around kneeling on the floor.

"How?" she asked amazed, hoping it would be specific enough.

"Me n Puck built it" she said as she ran a hand through her hair. "And by me n Puck I mean he built it and I lay by the pool" she smirked.

Brittany giggled.

"Well this is by far the most awesome thing ever" sighed Brittany.

They fell into a brief silence.

"You play?" Brittany asked nodding her head at the guitar.

"That's Pucks" Santana said shaking her head as she crawled over toward a wooden box and started rummaging through it.

"You and Puck seem close" Brittany said.

"Not really…" Santana shrugged. "He's an asshole and so am I so…we've gotten used to each other. He's more like an annoying big brother that I have to see on a daily basis, but he ain't all that bad I guess" she said as she extracted a tin box and crawled over toward her.

"What about you and Rachel?" Brittany asked, curiosity gnawing at her.

"Me and Rachel?" Santana repeated looking bemused. "She's OK I guess…"

"Well it's just like everyone makes fun of her cause she's a bit of a diva and is in Glee club and she dresses weird" Brittany said, trying to coax out more of an answer.

"Yeah well anybody gives her any shit they'll have me to deal with" said Santana as she raised her shades and rested them on her head.

"So…you like Rachel?" asked Brittany hesitantly.

"Of course I do I…" Santana trailed and narrowed her eyes at the blonde. "Hold up, not in _that_ way though _Blondie_" she said shaking her head and giving a low laugh. "OK so she's got a nice ass, but anything from the waist up I can't be dealing with."

Brittany pursed her lips to stop a laugh.

"Why do you care? You ask way too many questions…"

Brittany shrugged.

"If you really must know…" Santana continued. "Rachel's an annoying dwarf, she talks way too much, she sings way too much, she freakin' refers to herself in the third person…but…" sighed Santana. "I love the girl; she's been a good friend to me so…" she said shrugging and looking away.

Brittany grinned stupidly at Santana.

"What?" asked Santana looking annoyed.

"Look at you…" she said leaning forward and playfully punching Santana on the forearm. "Who knew you had a soft side underneath all that rough exterior?" she smirked mischievously.

Santana suddenly pounced at her, throwing her back to the floor, the Latina straddled her hips and pinned the blonde's arms down above her head by gripping both her wrists.

"Funny…" she said shortly pining her down harder and squeezing her wrists tighter. "Oh an FYI _Blondie_? You tell Rachel I said any of that and I will ends you."

"Oh c'mon Santana…" Brittany chuckled looking up into dark eyes. "I think it's sweet, I'm sure Rachel would think it's nice that you appreciate her friendship"

"I'd never hear the end of it" sighed Santana rolling her eyes. "I mean it, you tell her or anyone for that matter…and I'll tell everyone about your itch" she said with a wicked smirk.

"But that's not fair…" said Brittany bluntly. "Speaking of which, this position totally isn't helping" she said looking down where Santana was perched upon her pelvis.

Santana rolled her hips down onto Brittany's center as the blonde took a sharp intake of air. She gulped and looked up at Santana who just laughed a little, amused. Brittany thought perhaps Santana enjoyed torturing her sometimes. The other girl let her grip on the blondes wrists go and leaned back a little, grabbing the tin she got earlier.

"Tell me something panda…" she said opening the tin box and putting the lid down on the floor next to her.

Brittany didn't know what to do with her hands now so she rested them on her stomach. She really wanted to run them up the other girl's thighs though, but that probably wouldn't be OK.

"Have you ever done a shotgun before?"

"Uhm…" began Brittany her eyebrows knitting together. "I know my dad's like in the army and stuff but I don't really believe in guns."

Santana snorted then rolled her eyes.

"No it's when you blow smoke…" Santana sighed shaking her head. "Never mind I'll show you" she said taking a joint and lighter out of the tin.

"Oh…" said Brittany in realization. "Yeah I think I know what you're talking about, but I've never…" she trailed as she watched Santana light the tip; it glowed and emitted thin tendrils.

She watched as Santana inhaled a mouthful of thick smoke. Santana lowered, their chests pressing, their bodies flush against each other. Brittany closed her eyes waiting with parted lips, her heart pounding in her ears. Santana's lips ghosted hers as white smoke floated between their open mouths. Brittany breathed in deeply, the smoke filling her lungs. She felt Santana's lips move away from her as she sat back up.

"Woah…" Brittany breathed as she opened her eyes and exhaled.

There was a sudden beeping sound.

Santana withdrew her mobile from her pocket and was apparently reading a text.

"That reminds me…" said Brittany taking her own mobile out of her pocket. She looked over her 5 missed text messages; all were worried texts received from Quinn last night. She bit her lower lip. She felt guilty for just forgetting all about Quinn and now today she wasn't in school, the other blonde was probably worried about her. She typed in a quick text message reply:

_Hey Q, sorry didn't mean 2 make u worried, I went 2 Santana's last nite, I'm still at her place now, I'll c u tomorrow in school xx B_

She sent it. She looked up at Santana who was frowning at her own phone.

"Who is it?"

"Nothing…just Rachel wondering if I'm going to Benny's later" said Santana, shoving her phone back in her pocket and taking another drag, blowing smoke back out in hoops through her thick lips.

"Benny's?"

"Yeah it's a small diner in town she waitresses at, to pay for her ballet lessons or whatever shit she does…" sighed Santana, rolling off Brittany and lying down the floor beside her.

Brittany asked for Santana's phone number, and begrudgingly she complied. Brittany put her own number in Santana's. She felt giddy, friends definitely had each other's numbers right?

They spent some time passing the joint between them. Brittany felt light and giggly. The sunlight was pouring in through the window, strobes of orange and red floating around. The light hit the leaves outside causing green to glow. Brittany was lost in a sea of colors. It was so bright today. She giggled as a thought entered her head.

"Hey Santana do you ever like…think about life? Like uhm, why do people say 'bye bye' but not 'hi hi'?" she asked.

Santana snorted and broke out in a lazy grin. Brittany lulled her head to the side. Santana was so pretty when she smiled. Other thoughts flooded her head.

"Or like…" she continued. "Do fish sleep?" she asked curiously.

They both burst into a fit of laughter. They argued and pondered over random things for a while until their stomachs became too sore to laugh any more. They just lay in silence for a while until it was broken by a voice calling up from the garden below.

"Brittany?"

Brittany and Santana sat up, looked to each other, then crawled at the same time to the door opening and peered down. It was Quinn; still in her cheerios outfit.

"Heyyyy…Quinn, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at school?" Brittany asked dopily.

"Fabray…get the hell outta my garden afores your water breaks all over my lawn" said Santana scathingly.

Brittany nudged Santana's shoulder.

"Hey don't be mean…" the blonde whispered. "You can't say that stuff out loud"

"Whatever…"

"I'm here for Brittany" said Quinn looking up at them. "And no Brittany, it's almost half four in the afternoon, school's finished."

Both Brittany and Santana turned to each other, eyes wide – they then burst into simultaneous laughter.

"What's so funny?" asked Quinn folding her arms and frowning between the two.

"Woah does times really go by that quickly? But…But…we literally just came up here" said Brittany confused.

"I don't know what's happening" said Santana monotonously.

Brittany giggled shoving her arm.

"Hey Quinn! Guess what? Santana shot me with a shotgun" she said matter-of-factly as Santana stifled a laugh against the back of her hand.

Quinn narrowed her eyes at them.

"Great, first you get her drunk and now you get her high? Just great Santana" she snapped at the Latina. "Come on Brittany, I'm here to drive you home."

"OK…" sighed Brittany defeated. She didn't really want to leave but she guess she had to eventually. "I'm super hungry anyways" she mumbled as she descended the ladder.

Quinn drove Brittany back to her place in silence. Brittany leaned her forehead against the car window and sighed. Quinn was probably mad at her, her mom was probably mad at her, Santana though wasn't mad at her. She thought it a strange turn of events; usually everything was the other way around.

After her dinner, Brittany went to her bed feeling tired. She spoke a while to her mom about her dad returning and she felt really excited, almost as if it was too good to be true.

Her eyes were almost drifting off to sleep when the glow of her mobile snapped them back open. She reached over to her bedside table and read the text she just received – the screen said it was from Santana:

_I had fun today panda…_

Brittany smiled goofily as she typed out a reply, double-checking she made no mistakes:

_Me too Santana, good night :) xx B_

Brittany pressed send and rolled over on her bed contently, letting sleep take over.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey guys, still recovering from the awesomeness of the 'Heart' episode, Brittana acting and talking like a couple finally, here's to the rest of the season being just as good hopefully. :)** **This chapter is sort of filler, but I've already started the next one so hopefully it should be up before Tuesday's episode of Glee (damn 7 week hiatus), oh well there's always fanfic.** **Review and leave suggestions or any thoughts you have, enjoy!**

"I don't really see what the problem is" said Brittany confused, taking her bag out her locker and slinging it over her shoulder. She looked to Quinn who was standing next to her going through her own locker.

"I told you to stay away from her on your first day, that was just last week Brittany, now I know your memory isn't _that _bad"

"But we're becoming friends…I know it…I even got her number yesterday" smiled Brittany.

"Then she's up to something" Quinn hissed quickly.

"Everybody thinks she's a bad person but she's not" Brittany insisted beginning to feel annoyed. "You're totally letting your past friendship with her cloud your judgment."

Quinn quickly shut her locker and spun around to Brittany, her ponytail swaying.

"And I have to wonder what it is exactly that's clouding _your _judgment Brittany" she bit back.

"Whaddya mean?" said Brittany quickly, biting her nails.

"At the party? You said you…liked Santana" Quinn said lowly looking around.

"Yeah and? I do like her" Brittany said simply, not seeing the problem.

"No I mean you whispered to me that you _really _liked her" Quinn said adamantly.

"Yeah…I do…" Brittany said slowly trying to recall the memory but she couldn't.

"No" said Quinn quickly shaking her hand. "It was the _way _you said it, almost as if you…"

"As if I what?" Brittany blurted out quickly, the memory slowly coming back to her. There was a brief pause.

"Nothing" Quinn retreated, her shoulders dropping. "Look Brittany you're sweet and you assume the best in everyone but just be careful…Santana Lopez does not do friendship OK? I just don't want you to get hurt-"

"Oh, are my ears burning or is it just incredibly warm in here Fabray?" came Santana's voice from behind them so suddenly that Brittany jumped out of her skin.

The Latina strode by them and went to her own locker; today it was short denim shorts with a practically see-through white top. Brittany thought the black lace bra clearly on display underneath was purely to torture her and nothing else. She swallowed and looked to Quinn beside her.

"Tut, tut…don't you know it's rude to talk about people behind their backs?" Santana said sarcastically, getting her own bag and swinging it over her shoulder, the familiar clatter of bottles ringing out. "Of course I was behind your back…literally" she said smirking at her own play on words.

"I was just about to say to Brittany that…I think you're a bad influence on her" said Quinn folding her arms and raising her head.

Santana scoffed.

"Oh puh-lease…and what? You aren't? You know _stretch marks _you'd actually be pretty bearable if you cut out the hypocritical bullshit and that god-awful 'holier than thou' attitude you carry around with you" scowled Santana mirroring Quinn's stance. "Besides…" she continued. "Why the fuck are you treating her like a child? 'Bad influence'? Geez she ain't a toddler, sure she may be as dumb as a box of hair but she isn't delicate, she isn't some sort of special little snowflake that you have to take care of…she isn't there for you to god damn _mother_ her" Santana spat.

Brittany just stood there chewing her lip nervously as an uncomfortable silence washed over them; the word 'mother' lingeringly awkwardly around them. Quinn's face went white as her eyes suddenly looked glossy.

"Fine" she said walking away.

"Quinn wait-" Brittany began, but the other girl was already lost in a sea of students.

Brittany turned to Santana frowning.

"That was totally uncalled for"

"Whatever, truth hurts" shrugged Santana.

"And stop calling me dumb, because I'm not" Brittany said sharply balling her fists.

Santana smirked and folded her arms; she almost looked impressed. It annoyed Brittany more.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" demanded Brittany, not entirely sure how the girl she was mad at standing in front of her now was the same one she was besotted by yesterday.

"Just bout' time you grew a backbone…like I said you're cute when you're mad…hot even…" smirked Santana leaning into the lockers casually.

Brittany felt her cheeks burn again; it was frightening how quickly Santana disarmed her.

"You think flirting with me will make me forget how mean you were to Quinn?" said Brittany defiantly folding her arms.

"Why? Is it working?" Santana smirked, raising an eyebrow.

"N-no" Brittany all but stuttered.

"Mhmm…" sighed Santana licking her lips. "Shame, it was worth a shot. C'mon _Blondie _we have English to go to" she finished, holding out her pinky.

Brittany blinked down at it. Was Santana offering her pinky here, at school? Won't people think it strange? Did this mean they were friends? Had Santana thought about it like she said she would? Brittany took it begrudgingly. The tingles hadn't faded at least.

"Doesn't mean I'm not mad at you though" Brittany huffed whilst Santana tugged her by the pinky down the corridor.

"That's cute" the Latina said condescendingly.

Brittany rolled her eyes. Was it possible to really like and hate someone at the same time?

Sure enough the strange looks came. People at their lockers doing double-takes or frowning, others simply cowering in fear of Santana. Brittany thought they probably did look odd; Santana who notoriously hated the cheerios holding pinkies with…well…a cheerio. Santana holding pinkies with anyone would have been odd anyway. Brittany didn't much care though. She looked down at their swinging interlinked pinkies and sighed sadly. She wondered what it'd be like to hold Santana's hand. Probably a whole lot more tingly. They arrived at English and Santana didn't let go till they were at their table. The surprised looks from outside in the corridor were also in here, including on Puck and Finn's faces. Puck and Finn spun around whilst they sat down.

"Where the hell were you yesterday?" Puck hissed at Santana.

"Hi Brittany" Finn said dopily, giving her a small wave.

"Hey Finn" she smiled back.

"Getting high…" shrugged Santana as she took out a bottle form her bag and swallowed a few gulps back. Brittany frowned, it was morning and Santana was drinking – that can't be good. She made a mental note to herself to ask about it later.

"Why didn't you call me then?" Puck asked his face sullen, as if he missed out on some grand opportunity.

"Because I already had company" said Santana airily as she put down her bag and took out her notes and pens.

"What? Who?" Puck frowned.

Santana cocked her head toward Brittany beside her.

"What…you and _her_ got high?" said Puck sniggering. "But how would you be able to tell if she's high? There wouldn't be much of a difference surely-"

Thwack.

Pucks forehead once again fell victim to Santana's pen.

"Quit doin' that!" he groaned rubbing his head.

"Listen here _Jewhawk_, only I gets to make fun of _Blondie _here, we clear?" she said readying another pen.

"Since when?"

"Since now" she shot back.

Puck grumbled and turned back around to his table; Finn following suit. Mr. Henderson was making his rounds handing out the same booklet they'd been working on in the past week. The usual book was placed in front of them and as usual their chairs met in the middle. It didn't feel nearly as awkward now though, not now that they were maybe friends. Brittany leaned in a little to Santana's ear.

"Hey uhm, did you mean what you texted me last night?" she whispered, leaning back a little and smiling.

Santana's eyes momentarily flickered to the side but then returned them to her paper she was writing on. She nodded though.

"Sweet" Brittany said grinning and began answering her own questions.

The rest of the class dragged on in silence, Brittany chewing the rubber end of her pencil in concentration. Brittany tensed suddenly when she felt Santana's lips ghost the back of her ear.

"I've been thinking about you…" Santana husked into her ear.

Brittany clenched her pencil and tried to continue writing, only to be leaning so hard on the paper that the tip of the led snapped and pinged away, it falling and rolling on the opposite side of the classroom floor. She felt Santana's low laugh tickle her skin behind her ear and travel down her neck. Why did she have to be such a mess all the time? She was so stupid.

"About your...itch" she continued whispering into her ear, Brittany could almost feel her smirk.

Brittany hadn't intentionally called it an itch; it was a spur of the moment description when she tried to explain where she was coming from to Santana. Suddenly this 'itch' became an inside joke, it became their thing, just like pinky linking was also their thing – friends had things, right?

"What about it?" Brittany asked quietly, finally finding her voice. She tried to continue on writing with a half-broken pencil led.

"Well I kind of feel for you, I mean your little brain probably doesn't know what to do with all these…feelings…am I right?" she said mockingly, her mouth still lingering by the shell of Brittany's ear. Every time she spoke a sea of goosebumps rose from the blondes skin. "I mean it's not like boys is it? You're a hot cheerleader, I'm sure getting boyfriends has never been a problem for you. I'm sure all your sexual experiences have involved you just lying there on your back like a freakin' blow-up doll, cause after all you just want people to like you, right? Any of this sounding familiar _Blondie?_"

"Shut up Santana" she snapped. "I kinda wish I never told you now…" Brittany mumbled.

"Daww, surely you don't regret me getting you off in my kitchen?"

Brittany froze and stopped writing.

"Didn't think so…" Santana laughed softly in her ear.

"What's your point?" Brittany hissed more forcibly, she wished Santana would stop toying with her.

"Well…" Santana began slowly. "Since we're sort of friends now, I was going to offer you some _friendly _advice…"

Brittany internally flailed at Santana's recognition of their budding friendship; she bit her lower lip though and tried to focus on how mad she still was at the other girl. Santana leaned away from her ear and stared at her. Brittany turned a little and raised her eyebrows for the other girl to elaborate.

"Best way to get rid of an itch…" Santana began lowly. "Is either by taking very cold showers…or…rubbing yourself so the itch goes away" she smirked.

Brittany gulped. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by the school bell ringing.

"finalmente, el almuerzo..." sighed Santana, standing up and shoving her work into her bag. She was walking around the table and about to head to exit the class when Brittany asked her something she had thought about asking for a week now.

"Hey uhm, Santana?"

Santana turned around and walked back, standing opposite Brittany on the other side of the table as the rest of the class poured out. Santana leaned forward, her arms resting on the table and her face coming closer to the blondes. Brittany looked down; that visible black lace bra was super distracting.

Santana clicked her fingers.

"Eye's are up here _Blondie_" she said sharply.

"Right…" said Brittany shaking her head and looking into deep brown. "I wanted to ask you a favor…two actually."

"Oh? This should be good"

"Yeah I was just wondering if you could like maybe teach me Spanish? Oh and also can you apologize to Quinn" the blonde added quickly.

Santana snorted.

"Oh suuure, anything else you want? Wants me to pull the pope's hat from my ass? World peace perhaps?"

"No, just the Spanish and the apology will do" said Brittany simply.

Santana rolled her eyes.

"And what do I get out of this? What are you going to do for me?" she asked lowly; running a hand through her hair and biting her lower lip.

"Uh…" Brittany hesitated, distracted entirely. "Anything you want."

"You'll do _anything _I want you to?" Santana smirked glaring into her eyes.

Brittany was beginning to regret saying that; then again a part deep down in her wasn't at all.

"I-I guess…y'know…within reason" Brittany mumbled.

Santana's smirk grew wider as she stood up, she look like she just won a prize or something. It was unsettling.

"Every Thursday night, 7pm sharp, my house – don't be late" she said simply as she began to walk toward the door.

Brittany's mind was reeling trying to catch up to Santana's words. All she did was ask and Santana said yes? That was too easy, she almost didn't believe her luck.

"Wait Santana! What about the apology?"

"Not a chance in hell" called the Latina over her shoulder as she strode out the classroom door and disappeared out of sight.

"It's a start" Brittany sighed to the empty classroom.

Wednesday came, the day had been uneventful so far and probably wasn't going to change anytime soon. The Cheerios tyrannical coach Sue Sylvester was making them practice a routine out on the empty football pitch during lunch. The sun was blaring, Brittany hadn't eaten and she felt lifeless. She looked across to the bleachers where Santana normally was underneath; except this time she was sitting with a small group on the stands. Brittany narrowed her eyes and recognized them as Mercedes, Rachel and the bowtie boy from before; he was twirling on the front bench and possibly singing – Brittany couldn't quite hear from here. Santana had shades on but was just looking forward, she could have been staring into space or watching her right now, Brittany had no idea. The blonde turned back around when Sue blew her whistle.

For what felt like the millionth time, Brittany did a flip, a cartwheel then landed perfectly into the splits, her legs grazing across the grass. She held her pose and tried to minimize her breathing as the routine ended.

"Mediocre!" Sue bellowed at them. "Alright ladies, hit the showers, and I want you all to think about how you can improve on that disaster for regionals! Q get your fanny over here, we need to exchange words…"

The rest of the cheerios started to walk meekly back toward the building. Brittany bent over a little, hands on knees and tried to catch her breath. It was so warm, she was so thirsty and she had had nothing to eat – she was literally running on empty.

"Nice ass" came a voice from behind her.

Brittany shot up and spun around. Santana. The Latina lifted her shades and rested them on her head. Same usual smirk, same usual deep magnetic brown eyes. She was holding a slushie cup.

"Oh, it's you…" Brittany said, still sounding out of breath.

"That was…impressive _Blondie_"

"What was?" Brittany asked confused. She wiped her brow; she didn't really like the idea of talking to Santana right now when she was all icky and sweaty.

"You're routine _dipshit_, who knew you were so flexible?" she smirked.

"Oh thanks…well y'know…there's a lot you don't know about me" Brittany smirked back.

"I bet…" Santana said slowly, brown eyes running shamelessly up and down Brittany's body, resting for several moments on her legs. Brittany felt herself tense up, she suddenly felt like she was being looked at under a magnifying glass. Which in this heat would totally melt her. That or Santana would.

"Here this is for you…" Santana said as she stretched out her arm, offering the slushie cup.

"Thanks, I'm dying of thirst…" said Brittany as she took it and peered down into the cup. "Blue, my favorite" she grinned, as she took large gulps from the straw.

"Your favorite…" Santana repeated nodding, smiling at her.

There was a moment of silence as Brittany drank, smiling bashfully at Santana – who was looking around awkwardly.

"I better get back…" said Santana pointing with her thumb over her shoulder to the crowd who were on the bleachers. "Afores Rachel and Mercedes burst into a spontaneous diva-off."

Brittany laughed.

"OK, I guess I'll see you tomorrow" smiled Brittany.

Santana shrugged and walked away.

"What did _she _want?" came a voice from behind her.

Brittany turned around and faced Quinn.

"Nothing…" sighed Brittany. "She just came over to say the routine was good and to give me this drink" smiled Brittany. "Isn't she awesome?"

Quinn narrowed her eyes skeptically.

"Whatever you say Brittany, don't say I didn't warn you about her though…"

Brittany sighed. She wished Quinn, no she wished _everyone _could see the Santana she saw.

Thursday came and Brittany was excited. Thursday was now officially her favorite day, not only because she had Spanish, English and a free period today (which meant a potential 3 hours with Santana), but also it was now the night where she had Spanish lessons from Santana herself. A day full of Santana. If it was anything like their last day together then Brittany wished it were Thursday every day. She was on a high all day she even arrived at Spanish 5 minutes early. She bounced on the spot as she and Quinn waited. Mr. Shue soon came along and unlocked the door.

"Hey girls" he said smiling at them.

"Hello Mr. Shue" Quinn said softly as she bypassed them and went into the class.

"Hey Brittany, if you want, considering what happened last week – Mercedes has agreed to switch seats with you, so you can sit next to Quinn?" Mr. Shue said giving he a sympathetic smile.

"No" Brittany said quickly. "I mean uhm, it's not that I don't want to sit next to Quinn its just Santana and I have worked things out, so it's no sweat…"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah…" Brittany sighed. "We're friends now, she's even going to teach me Spanish to improve my grades" beamed Brittany.

"She is? Santana?" asked Mr. Shue skeptically, frowning.

Brittany rolled her eyes, why did everyone doubt Santana's sincerity?

Brittany went inside and took her usual seat at the back. Santana soon came in with Rachel at her heels, yapping away. Santana had on her short denim jean shorts and a lose hanging white tank top. Brittany's jaw opened then shut slowly – one of these days she wouldn't be amazed by seeing the other girl. Maybe. Brittany frowned at the Latina as she took her seat next to her. She had wet patches all over her top and beads of water dripping down her arm and neck. It was perhaps the sexiest sight Brittany had ever seen. She wondered how glorious Santana would look out in the rain. She frowned though; it was like a million degree's outside.

"How uhm…did…" Brittany trailed her words; distracted by a bead of water that was slowly sliding it's way down caramel skin downwards toward the valley between the other girl's breasts.

Santana raised an eyebrow at her.

"It was so freakin' warm out so I ran through the sprinklers on the field to cool off" the other girl said shrugging. "Cat got your tongue _Blondie_?" she asked smirking with a dark look in her eyes. Santana suddenly shimmied her upper body, her boobs shaking, droplets of water splashing Brittany.

"Hey! You're soaking me" Brittany said holding up her arm, laughing slightly.

"Wouldn't be the first time" the other girl whispered.

Brittany just gulped, her impending words lost somewhere in the back of her throat. Oh god, why did it always have to be this frustrating? Part of her just wanted her old life back, the one where she could semi-concentrate in class and form sentences.

Rachel spun around on her chair and spoke to Santana.

"Sooo…you said you'd give me an answer today" the brunette beamed eagerly.

"Eugh…so I did" noted Santana.

"Well? Will you join the Glee club?"

"Can't believe I'm even about to say this but…yeah OK…I'll give your little Glee club a try" Santana sighed.

The noise that erupted from Rachel could only be called a squeal and she leaped toward Santana flinging her arms around the girl's neck. She pulled away and looked entirely overwhelmed, like she had a million idea's running through her head and didn't know which one to focus on first.

"Oh my god, well this is fantastic, you won't regret it trust me" Rachel said splaying out her hands.

"Mhmm-mhmm, but FYI I'm leaving the moment I see jazz hands" Santana said disgruntled.

"Deal" beamed Rachel. "Excuse me, I'm going to text Kurt to discuss how this will change our vocal arrangement, me on lead of course-"

"I'll join too" Brittany suddenly blurted out. "Although I don't think Quinn would like it"

"You will? Great! To be perfectly honest we do need some sort of rhythm within the group, I mean obviously not everyone can be as talented as you or I Brittany-"

Santana scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"But _anyway_…" Rachel pressed on ignoring her. "I'm sure you'll be a welcome addition."

The small brunette spun back around and was tapping away on her mobile phone.

Santana was strangely quiet during the rest of the lesson, where the class repeated phrases Mr. Shue called out to them monotonously. Brittany pouted at Santana wondering if something was wrong, maybe she did something wrong? A few minutes before class ended Santana leaned into her ear once again.

"Is it your plan to stalk me all year _Blondie_?" she hissed.

"What?" Brittany shook her head confused. "Uh…no."

"Good" Santana said shortly "Just cause I let you rub one off on my leg like a freakin' dog in heat, doesn't mean I'm fucking in love with you or anything, we clear?" she said firmly, leaning back.

Brittany blinked at her. Love? That was a scary word; Brittany didn't really want to think about that.

"I…sorry I just…" Brittany hesitated, not knowing quite what to say or what she did wrong.

The bell rang out.

"Don't forget your lesson tonight" said Santana, sounding almost disappointed as she stood up and left before Brittany could say another word. Brittany slumped back down on her seat as the class poured out.

"Don't worry…" came a soft voice. Brittany looked up; Rachel was still here. "If it's any consolation I think she likes you too…" she said giving the blonde a sympathetic smile. With that the girl stood up and left the classroom.

Brittany watched her leave. How did she know? Was she that obvious? Brittany sighed miserably. Maybe Rachel wasn't all that bad after all.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry I wasn't able to put this up when I said I would (I tend to just keep writing till I feel like it's come to the end of the chapter), hence why the length will always vary. Good news is, this is another super long one :)**

**For those of you who feel that Santana's a bit too mean to Brittany, there's still a few things that has yet to be explained, but hopefully this chapter will give an insight more into Santana. Oh and for those of you who want Britt to stand up for herself more, there is a power balance issue with their dynamic as of now, but it will change during time, the tables certainly start to turn in this chapter. Let me know what you think! Keep the reviews coming, I honestly read them all (I wish FF had a reply feature :/)** **Oh well...**

** at sanbrittan** **- That's actually a good idea about Brittany choosing not to sit next to Santana just to see her reaction - I'll make Brittany sit next to Rachel in the next chapter, should be fun :P**

**/**

Brittany ran out toward the field, an odd sense of Déjà vu washing over her; just this time last week she was angry, trying to find Santana so she could hit her. Today however she wasn't quite sure what she was going to do or say once she found her. Brittany looked across and yet again the same students on their free period were sitting on the bleachers basking in the sunlight. Brittany headed toward the far end bleachers, knowing exactly where Santana would be. Once she got there however she heard a voice, definitely not Santana's. Brittany stilled her movements and crept closer quietly, she felt guilty for eavesdropping but her curiosity got the better of her once she realized it was Rachel talking to Santana.

"She looked hurt you know"

That was definitely Rachel.

"And?" came a bored response. Definitely Santana.

Brittany's heart sped up; she lowered her head and listened intently.

"You like her" came Rachel's voice sounding coy.

"What? No I don't, I mean yeah she's OK for a cheerio but-"

"You like her, come on Santana how often does this happen to you? Not ever, besides I…I honestly think she'd be good for you, I'm happy for you. If anyone deserves happiness in their lives it's you."

"I have no idea what you're talking about _short stuff_" Santana said flatly, though not convincingly.

Brittany smiled inwardly.

"Playground mentality" Rachel stated simply.

Brittany frowned. Santana didn't appear to understand either as Rachel went on to clarify.

"You know…playground mentality? Like when a little boy in the playground pushes the girl because he secretly wants her attention and likes her…or in this case the girl pushes the girl but you get the idea-"

"Fascinating" Santana deadpanned.

"I for one think it merely beneficial to you, I mean you're not exactly the most social person in the world Santana…that is to say that there's certainly room for improvement, maybe having a girlfriend would-"

"I don't do girlfriends. I fuck whoever is remotely interested then leave the next morning" Santana interjected.

"Must you be so crass? Look…keep telling yourself it's nothing but I've never seen you so enamored by a girl."

"Eww."

"I'm serious, you act like you don't like her, like she's nothing more than an inconvenience but I know you like her, you like her a lot" said Rachel matter-of-factly.

"No I don't…Jesus Christ she's annoying" Santana huffed.

"Why?" came Rachel confused.

"Uh…where do I even begin? How abouts the fact that she's fucking hot and she pretends she doesn't know it, in fact just her general lack of self-awareness pisses me off"

"So it 'pisses you off' because she has no barriers, unlike you who has them up around her like a prison wall?" Rachel shot back.

"Or…" continued Santana ignoring her. "The fact she's confusing as hell. Nothing seems to faze her. I pulled her chair away and she didn't even hit me back. Jesus, I had to make a jibe about her dad dying just to get a rise out of her"

"Sooo…you don't like it that she doesn't take the bait as opposed to you who often overreacts to every single little thing?"

"Or…" continued Santana yet again ignoring Rachel but sounding increasingly more annoyed. "The fact she just like…walks around…you know? Like everything's so fucking simple, she see's everything too simply, it's frustrating as hell…"

"As opposed to you who makes life overly complicated and see's an obstacle even when there is none…" Rachel said confidently. "Honestly Santana the more you say, the more I'm convinced you guys are a perfect match…"

"I…" Santana began but her voice died.

Brittany swallowed apprehensively but she was so ecstatic she could kiss Rachel right now. They barely knew each other yet there the other girl was, fighting her corner. She had never known Santana to be lost for words. There was a moment of silence.

"Look…" Rachel began more softly. "I'm not saying you should ask her out or do any monkey business with her-"

"Monkey business?" Santana snorted. "Too late for that _Barbra_…"

"You slept with her?" Rachel asked astounded.

"No…not really we just…I just…OK look Imma spare you the details but we…fooled around. It didn't mean anything though."

Brittany felt a heavy panging sensation in her heart.

"But…" Santana continued, her voice uncharacteristically soft. "Honestly? I haven't been able to stop thinking about her. Her hair, her eyes, the way her nose scrunches up when she asks a question, the way she chews the end of her pencil when she's concentrating really hard in class…"

Brittany's heart imploded, her mind racing. She thought she was the one who spent entire lessons staring idly at Santana, how had she missed that Santana was doing the same?

"But most of all…" Santana continued, her voice quieting further, so much so Brittany had to strain to hear. "It's the way she _looks_ at me…god…the way she looks at me" Santana sighed. "It's like she looks at me like nobody else does, like she see's a good person or something, she hangs on every word I say too, and she doesn't look at me with fear or sadness or any of that shit, she just looks at me and it fills me with…I don't know, I'm beginning to sound like a freakin' rom com movie…"

"Aww, you've got it bad" Rachel giggled.

"Shut up" Santana said flatly.

They fell into another silence and Brittany sensed it was her time to leave. She wouldn't bother confronting Santana, not now. She had a lot to think about. She ran back across the field before the other two discovered she was there.

Brittany walked into English; the last lesson of the day, slightly surprised to see Santana was there before her. She walked over and took her usual seat. A few minutes past in awkward silence as the rest of the students came in. Finn who had always sat in front of Brittany turned around to her.

"Hey Brittany, I was wondering if you want to maybe go on date with me tomorrow night?"

Brittany stared at him, his words not quite sinking in. She saw the tall boy's eyes shift to the side where Santana was sitting.

"If that's OK that is…" he mumbled.

Brittany frowned. She could sympathize with that feeling – that awkward sense of needing Santana's approval. His proposal though was so random and out of the blue Brittany wondered what on earth was going through Finn's head. She entertained the idea for a moment. Santana was sitting right there – and if Santana prodded the blonde to get a rise out of her, it's only fair she try return the favor.

"A date? Where to?" she asked curiously.

"Uh…what the actual fuck_ Blondie_?" snapped Santana.

"What?"

"You can't go out with him…he's…he's…" Santana visibly struggling for a valid reason. "Freakishly tall" she finished.

Brittany snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Uh…guys? I'm right here y'know" Finn mumbled awkwardly. "Oh and to answer your question, a bunch of us are going to Lavender, it's a popular club, you'll like it, it's pretty rad" the tall boy smiled dopily.

"Yeah…sure OK" Brittany smiled.

"Cool! Uhm, can we like talk about it after class? I need to tell you something though"

"Yeah OK" Brittany said slowly, more confused than ever. What was going on?

"Great" he smiled then turned around.

Brittany and Santana spent almost the rest of the class hour in total silence. None of the usual whispers or arm grazes or hitting Puck with pens or occasional glances. Santana literally ignored her. They were sitting incredibly close though, the intoxicating smell of smoke and coconuts clouding her senses. The pair still shared the same book, and Santana had turned the page when Brittany was still working on the last page. Nothing new, except this time Santana didn't bother to ask if she was finished or not.

"Hey uhm, can you turn it back for a few minutes?" Brittany whispered.

"No"

"But I'm not finished with the last-"

"It' not my fault you're so fucking slow _Blondie_" hissed Santana.

"Turn the page back…now" Brittany said through gritted teeth.

"Or what?" Santana cocked an eyebrow. Santana, especially this close, was so intimidating - a small part of Brittany was slightly turned on by it, god, what was wrong with her? Brittany's eyes flickered down to Santana's lips. She was so mad at her, so angry she wanted to kiss her, that would show her - did that even make sense?

Brittany reached forward and flipped the page back, Santana went to flip it forward but Brittany grabbed her wrist and held it tight stopping her. Brittany relished in the fact that she was physically much stronger, therefore won this round.

"Fuck you" Santana said darkly.

Brittany leaned forward slightly, her heart hammering in her throat. They were so close.

"I wish you would" Brittany said breathlessly back.

She loosened her tight grip on Santana's wrist and just held it there. Santana's eye's widened as if entirely taken aback by Brittany's boldness. They both looked down to Brittany's hand then back at each other. Brittany swallowed thickly, she was still mad but there was something else lingering in the close air between them. Santana was just looking at her, a slight crease in her brow. She was definitely a book, the hardest one to read. Brittany bit her lower lip and let her eyes trail down Santana's body as she began drawing small circles around Santana's inner wrist with her thumb. She wondered if Santana got tingles like she did. Brittany shook her head and looked up to the clock - a minute of class left.

"The cheerios have practice for a half hour after school today" Brittany told Santana.

The other girl tilted her head slightly in wonderment. Brittany made sure to keep circling her thumb. She felt Santana's hand twitch slightly.

"If you're willing to wait…" Brittany continued, keeping her voice low and steady as she could. "I sorta know that the cheerios usually hit the showers after, most of them like take five minutes or something, but I also know that there's always this one cheerio, she has blonde hair and can do super crazy splits…" she trailed.

She saw a slight smile twitch at the corner of Santana's lips.

"Who spends _much _more time in the shower than the rest, like wayyy more time, so much so she's usually all alone in there, naked…showering…and I also happen to know there's a pretty good doorstopper in the changing rooms so…" Brittany said as she stopped the circular motions on the Latina's wrist and trailed a finger up her arm gently.

The bell rang out. Brittany stood up and bent down to Santana's ear.

"Just something to think about…" she whispered into her ear.

Brittany walked away out of class; she looked back at Santana once over her shoulder – who was sitting mouth slightly agape. Brittany smirked. She met Finn who was waiting for her outside, they both started to walk down the corridor as the school emptied around them.

"You're going to think I'm a real jerk…" he said slowly, coming to stop and facing her. "But when I asked you out on a date? I didn't really mean a date…I'm sorry if you like me in that way"

"I don't" Brittany said quickly but softly.

"Oh…" Finn said slowly. "Well that makes this a whole lot easier…you see, you know Rachel right? Rachel Berry?"

Brittany nodded, not sure where this was going.

"Well she's going tomorrow so I sort of asked you out in the hope that It would sort of make her jealous…I know…I'm pathetic" he mumbled, looking everywhere but her eyes.

"Uhm, that's OK…I'm sorta in a similar situation" said Brittany honestly.

"Y-you are?"

"Yeah so it's OK I'll still go with you, I just need to make sure the person I want to make jealous comes too" Brittany said absentmindedly, her brain swimming with thoughts.

"Really? What's his name?" grinned Finn.

Brittany sighed. Why did people always assume things? Nobody ever asks stuff.

"Nobody you know" she said airily, swiveling on her feet, the pleats of her cheerleader skirt dancing from side to side.

A little while later Brittany found herself back out in the sunshine with the rest of the cheerios. Some of them had formed a mini-pyramid in which Quinn was on top, Brittany was demoted to the bottom since coach had decided her upper body muscles were the strongest to support the weight of at least two girls. Brittany sighed; coach was probably right, but she still didn't marvel in the pain now being inflicted on each shoulder and arms as two sneakers dug into both her shoulder blades. She gripped them firmly around by the ankles trying to shift some of the weight. She struggled to open her eyes as they where watering slightly and looked around the bleachers. All empty. She hadn't really expected the Latina to come and watch a cheerio's practice session, maybe she'd show up in the showers? Then again, probably not.

Brittany rolled her aching shoulder as she sat on the changing room bench, most of the other cheerios now leaving to go home. Only her and Quinn were left. Brittany wondered what she'd tell Sue about not being able to attend after school sessions; she was pretty sure the Glee club used that time.

"What's wrong with you, why haven't you used the showers yet?" Quinn asked getting changed into her casual clothes with a damp towel around her neck.

"Huh? Oh…yeah I'm just going…" said Brittany inattentively.

"Are you OK Brittany?" Quinn asked genuinely, swinging her bag over her shoulder and closing her locker.

"Just tired…" Brittany nodded. "Like that time Lord Tubbington tried to climb the stairs alone even though I told him not to."

Quinn smiled at her.

"Yeah, Coach really needs to ease up, we've got regionals in the bag this year, I know it" the other blonde said knowingly. "Well, I'm going home, I promised my mother that I'd help her with a church project" Quinn sighed sadly, rolling her eyes a little.

Brittany smiled knowingly at her. Quinn was religious but Brittany got the sense she hated being part of a religion. None of it made any sense to Brittany though, she figured if there was a God then no bad stuff would happen, and bad things happened to good people, her cat had diabetes…although now that she thought about it that was probably because he ate so much. Still, wars are fought. Her mind briefly went to her dad who she hadn't seen in months. Brittany shook her head.

"Have fun" she grinned sarcastically.

"Yeah…" Quinn laughed shaking her head slowly and taking her leave.

Brittany stripped and went to one of the far showers, her bare feet splatting across the wet tiled floor. She sighed as the scorching warm water hit her body easing her aching muscles. She made sure to keep her head back; she didn't want her hair getting wet, as she couldn't be bothered drying it. The blonde stood there for a good 15 minutes, letting the water hit her face and her front. Her limbs were aching, as were her shoulders. There was no sound at all apart from the water hitting the basin, she was so relaxed she could curl up into a ball and sleep here. She suddenly heard footsteps splatting against the tile floor, echoing slightly around the room. She spun around to her right. Santana.

"Oh it's you…" Brittany said quietly as she rested her arms on the tiled wall partition, only her shoulders and head visible to the other girl. "I didn't think you'd come…"

Santana didn't say anything, she just strode closer toward the showers, her boots tapping across the floor. Brittany rested her head on the back of her hands.

"Neither did I…" Santana said. Her voice was low, but she sounded resigned, almost as if her being here was inevitable.

Brittany turned to face the shower once more and let water pour back over her. She heard Santana come closer and closer till she knew the girl was standing behind her. Brittany swallowed; she could almost feel Santana's gaze on her skin, no doubt running it's way up and down her naked body now. She felt suddenly nervous, it was really warm and steamy in here, and maybe she should turn the cold water on. No. She'd leave it. She was thinking way too much. A few moments past in silence, it wasn't an awkward silence but it was an intense one, Brittany continued to run soap up and down her body like nothing was happening, like everything was OK. She hated silence though; she needed to talk. Santana got there first however.

"Are you not self conscious?" came Santana voice from somewhere behind her, she sounded as if she were sitting on the bench behind her. Her tone was slightly confused but mostly curious.

"About what?" Brittany asked, puzzled.

"About me seeing you naked" said Santana as if it were obvious.

Brittany turned around, exposing herself fully to Santana. Brittany smirked as the other girl stood up.

"Uh…" Santana said slowly, her eyes traveling downward and her mouth hanging open.

Brittany shrugged.

"Whenever I'm home alone I like totally walk around naked, I'd actually be naked all the time if I didn't like clothes so much" she said brightly. "I like clothes, especially shirts with pictures of animals on em' or like hats…I like hats…especially if they are in the shape of animals cause I like animals too" Brittany said her voice faltering under Santana's gaze. Crap. She was rambling. Santana was simply staring at her and the other girls silence was beginning to unsettle her. Brittany spun back around and continued washing.

"Coach is being super hard on us…" Brittany said, her voice trembling now. She was trying to act cool, she thought she was in control but the tension and silence was killing her. She felt slightly light-headed by it all…or maybe it was the heat. "My muscles, especially my shoulders are aching…I love being in cheerios but I didn't think it would be this tough, you know?"

"Want me to give you a massage?" asked Santana, her voice thick with lust.

Brittany clenched the soap bar in her hand so hard it slipped up out of her hand and tumbled down clattering against the basin floor. Crap.

She heard footsteps and Santana chuckle almost mockingly before the footsteps stopped right behind her. She felt the heat radiate from her body, a coconut fragrance wafting into her proximity, invading her. The blonde closed her eyes unable to concentrate; she pursed her lips in embarrassment.

"I'll take that as a yes" Santana breathed over Brittany's shoulder, her breath causing goosebumps to rise over her skin.

All Brittany could do was nod. Santana brought both her hands to each of Brittany's shoulders. Brittany sighed in relief at the contact. Santana began kneading into the muscles in the blonde's shoulder blades, slowly but firmly with her thumbs, making small circling ministrations.

"Mhmm…" Brittany sighed. "That feels good"

Santana kept at it, Brittany feeling her muscles unstiffen and the knots loosen beneath her skin. She shut her eyes lazily. If it weren't for the butterflies in her stomach right now she'd feel very sleepy.

"I'm sorry about earlier…" came Santana's voice after a while. "About not letting you finish your work…although…I'm only apologizing because I don't want you pissed at me."

Brittany frowned but smiled lazily as Santana kept her massage going. This girl was by far the most stubborn person she'd ever met.

"Is that because you care so much about my feelings?" the blonde said sarcastically.

"Partly…" Santana said simply and Brittany was momentarily taken aback by how honest she sounded. "But mostly because you have no idea how fucking much it turns me on" she added.

Brittany felt weak at the knees slightly as she swallowed thickly at the Latina's words. Her skin was beginning to feel much more sensitive; she was very much aware of Santana's proximity, but she felt like she could feel every drop of water pound against her skin at the front and yet feel every application of pressure Santana was applying from the back. The sensations made her dizzy. Or Santana did. She didn't know anymore.

Santana stopped her massage and replaced her hands with her lips, making small delicate kisses on Brittany's shoulder. Brittany's breathing hitched as her mouth fell open.

"Ugh…" she moaned and without thinking about it reached her arm around behind her and clutched the back of Santana's neck pulling her closer.

"Mhmm" Santana hummed against her skin, pressing kisses over her shoulder and slowly up her neck, igniting her skin.

Each kiss was like a small adrenaline shot making her twitch and sigh, yet was surprisingly soft, just like Brittany remembered. Santana's large plump lips were like soft little clouds, gliding along her skin, Brittany was sure she was going to float away with them.

Brittany felt a burning throb emerge between her legs and tried rocking her hips backward into Santana to ease it. She needed Santana. Now. She needed to get rid of this itch.

"Easy…" Santana murmured against her skin, grabbing her hips. She could probably sense that Brittany was beginning to get restless.

"Santana, please" breathed Brittany.

"Switch the shower off" Santana husked in her hear.

Brittany, her heart beating wildly against her chest, reached forward and turned the nozzle, stopping the warm flow of water. Santana wrapped her arms around Brittany's waist, her hands grabbing at the blondes wet abs.

"C'mere" Santana practically grunted, pulling her backwards out the shower.

"Sit" Santana ordered, nodding at the bench.

Brittany obeyed without question, the now cold air hitting her wet body.

"Lie back…long ways…" Santana whispered.

Brittany blinked at Santana, lying down on a wooden bench wasn't the most comfortable of positions. She didn't even know what Santana had in mind. As usual.

"Do it" Santana said quickly. Her tone made Brittany's center throb a little more in anticipation. "It'll feel good, I promise…" she added softly but throatily.

Brittany carefully lay back on her back, but propped her elbows behind her so her head wasn't lying back. She lifted her legs and raised them onto the bench so she was lying vertically across it. She looked up at Santana who gave a throaty laugh.

"How am I supposed to do anything with you lying like that?" she asked amused.

"Uhm…" Brittany hesitated, looking down at her body, her chest heaving.

"Spread em'…" Santana said thickly looking at the blonde's long legs.

Brittany paused and closed her eyes as she parted and spread her legs, both now hanging from each side of the bench. She had never felt more exposed and vulnerable in her entire life. Santana was looking down at her with heavy lids and an unrecognizable expression – Brittany felt like Santana was a hunter ready to swoop down and devour her prey.

"Much better" Santana smirked as she lay down on her stomach in front of Brittany, her head coming in-between the girls legs.

"Oh my god…" Brittany breathed looking down at Santana looking lustfully back up, past her heaving chest with nipples fully erect.

"Relax" Santana cooed as she began peppering familiar kisses up the inside of one of her thighs. She felt her muscles clench. "I haven't even done anything yet" Santana smirked up at her.

Brittany blushed as she smiled bashfully a little. Her muscles relaxed as she got used to Santana planting kisses on her; thick lips sticking slightly to wet skin.

Brittany reached her hand down and ran some of Santana's hair back, stroking her scalp and tucking her hair softly behind her ears.

"You're so sexy…" Brittany breathed quietly. She hoped that was OK to say.

Santana stopped her kisses and looked up, brown eyes locking with blue. She smirked and began snaking her tongue upward and upward, closer and closer to Brittany's aching sex. Oh god. Crap. Brittany pulse quickened. Santana ran her tongue up the full length of Brittany's leg then kept going further up and along her lower abdomen. Brittany's abs clenched. Oh my god. This was happening. Santana's eyes never left her as she ran her tongue along to her other leg and went back down the other thigh. Brittany almost came undone at the sight.

"Ugh…" Brittany sighed throwing her head back. Looking at Santana was counter-productive if she wanted this to last as long as possible.

She opened her eyes quickly and looked back down once she felt Santana's tongue leave the path it was snaking along.

"You taste like soap" the other girl smirked, licking her lips. "I wonder what you _really _taste like…" she trailed as she scooted further up and placed a fleeting but firm kiss against the blonde's swollen and throbbing clit.

"Oh…fuck" Brittany said as her body jerked up, her voice shaking.

Santana seeming satisfied with herself hooked both her hands under each of Brittany's thighs and ran her tongue flatly up her entrance.

Brittany jerked again. She bit her lower lip harshly not trusting what would come out her mouth. She felt a familiar knot form in her stomach.

Brittany's wet folds were parting willingly for Santana's slick tongue to run slowly up and down, lapping at heated arousal. The Latina ran her tongue almost painfully slow. Up and down. Up and down. Like slow waves lapping lazily in an ocean.

"Santana…I…" Brittany stuttered not even knowing what she was trying to say. She bit her lip again as her hips began to rock forward into Santana's face. She needed more.

She felt Santana chuckle slightly, the feeling vibrating against her sensitive flesh which just made her moan more, whimpers of pleasure escaping the back of her throat. Santana circled her clit slowly with her tongue then trailed downwards, flicking her tongue at flesh until she got to the blonde's entrance. She circled it tantalizingly slowly in the same fashion.

"Ugh…" Brittany moaned, her body now writhing in pleasure, slow torturous pleasure. She could no longer tell what wetness was from her shower and what was from her own dripping arousal and sweat.

Santana continued her teasing of Brittany's entrance for longer and longer, then returning to her clit and doing the same. Brittany couldn't take it much longer; she felt like a balloon being slowly filled up with air and was ready to pop at any moment.

Santana suddenly stopped teasing around her entrance and dipped her tongue inside. Brittany jolted as she felt her stomach muscles clench and unclench. The Latina pulled out, only to dive straight back in. Santana's tongue became more frantic, twisting and turning, snaking it's way up inside her.

"F-fuck…" Brittany stammered as she began panting. She grabbed each side of the bench firmly, her knuckles quickly whitening from gripping so hard.

Santana buried her tongue deeper till she couldn't get much deeper, her face mashed up against Brittany's sex, her nose brushing her sensitive clit.

"San…I'm so close…too good…so close" she panted, her breathing becoming more and more eratic as sweat dripped from the back of her neck, mixing with the cold water on her body, it sent a shiver down her spine.

Santana withdrew her tongue and suddenly latched onto her clit, sucking with vigor, her head bobbing up and down.

Brittany seen stars as her muscles clenched, and the throbbing between her legs reached its breaking point. It tingled and burned. Santana continued to suck and flick her clit as Brittany jerked and writhed in pleasure. It was pure ecstasy. Her legs trembled and closed around Santana's head as she felt a second orgasm hit her by surprise. This one felt even more intense, and she suddenly felt wet between her legs. Really wet. Oh my god. The wetness was coming from her. She felt Santana moan against her. She felt a loud moan escape the back of her throat, Santana was quick to move her hand and clasp it firmly over the blondes mouth, muffling her screams of satisfaction. Brittany felt the waves of pleasure subside as her breathing slowly returning to normal. She just lay there with her mouth open unable to move, her heart hammering wildly and suddenly aware of her clammy skin.

Coming down from her high, her limbs felt like jelly. It was like the time in Santana's kitchen except this was a lot more intense. She almost couldn't feel her legs. She looked down to the other girl. Santana sat up slowly with a small smile on her face, Brittany could see wetness around the other girls plump lips and chin. Santana wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Brittany lay back and flung both her hands over her face. She was so embarrassed.

"Sorry…I…that's never happened…" she struggled, her voice muffled by her hands.

She suddenly felt Santana grab her wrists and pry her hands apart gently. Brittany opened her eyes, her vision blurry slightly. Santana was smirking at her.

"Sit up" she said gently.

Brittany did as she was told, Santana pulling her by the hands. Brittany looked down to the space on the bench in front of her; she could see liquid glistening against the wood, some of it dripping down the sides landing on the wet tile floor beneath them. She felt herself blush profusely.

"Don't sweat it _Blondie_" said Santana seeing the look on her face, laughing a little.

Santana got up, gathered some towels from the far end towel rack, dabbed the bench and some of the floor dry then flung them into the large washing bin in the middle of the changing room. Brittany just sat there watching her, she felt herself beginning to shiver as her wet body was suddenly aware of the cold air.

"Santana…that was…amazing"

"Up" said Santana now in front of her, offering her hand.

Brittany took it and stood up. Her hands may be sweaty and clammy and also sore from gripping the bench so hard, but she still felt the gentle tingles Santana's touch gave her. The other girl intertwined their fingers and led her back toward the shower. Oh my god. Brittany felt butterflies back in her stomach. Santana was holding her hand. It felt good. Really good. Santana leaned forward and switched the shower back on, quickly jumping back to avoid the water herself. She motioned her head for Brittany to go back in. Brittany nodded and stepped back into the shower; relief as warm water hit her body yet again. She felt the tingles disappear as Santana let go of her hand. Brittany turned around to face the girl, something had been nagging her for a while and she just had to make sure.

"About me joining Glee club…your not still mad, are you?" Brittany said pouting.

"I'm always mad at you" shrugged Santana.

Brittany chuckled.

"I can't win with you, can I?" the blonde grinned, grabbing Santana's hand again.

"Nope, Lopez's always win…" Santana sighed, looking down at their hands. Brittany began to sway their hands coyly. This was awesome. Just standing here talking to Santana and holding her hand. She wanted to do this all the time. The smile on the other girls face told Brittany that Santana might have enjoyed this almost as much as she did. There was something different about Santana today, maybe Rachel's words got to her, but still - her smile was wider, her eyes were softer yet she looked somewhat defeated – this was Santana with her barriers down. It made Brittany feel special to witness this Santana. The Latina let go of Brittany's hand again.

"I should head home…"

"Yeah" sighed Brittany. "Are we still on for later? Y'know my Spanish lesson?"

"I gave you my word, you'll be speaking Spanish by the end of the year better than I can" Santana said simply. She wasn't being sarcastic.

"Y-you honestly think?" asked Brittany surprised.

Santana nodded and began to walk away.

"Hey uhm Santana?" Brittany called out to her.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for…helping me with…y'know my itch and stuff" Brittany said awkwardly, skewing her mouth.

"Mhmm" the other girl hummed slightly, a smirk slowly spreading across her face. "Funny that…I didn't know it was even bothering you today" she said and left without another word.

The grin on Brittany's face didn't leave till she got home, and even that was only because her face was beginning to hurt. She changed into jeans and a top.

Brittany arrived at Santana's house later that evening, she had decided to walk there, bypassing Karofsky's house. It took her about 20 minutes from her house, but it was a warm evening and she needed to clear her head. She also needed to make sure she could still walk.

Brittany knocked on her door and stood there for a few minutes. Nobody answered. Weird, wasn't anyone home? Confused, she took out her mobile and texted Santana:

_Where r u? I'm at ur house but nbdy is answering x B_

A few seconds later her mobile vibrated and she read Santana's reply:

_Tree house_

Grinning feeling giddy she practically ran to the side of the house and skipped all the way back into the garden. She looked up and Santana was lying above, her head resting in her hand as her other was holding a blunt. She looked like she was still wearing the same vest top and shorts as earlier today. Brittany frowned. The rope ladder was bundled up there with her.

"Well? You gonna let me up? The blonde laughed at her.

Santana took a drag and blew out some smoke into the summer evening air. The sky was beginning to tinge red and orange as dusk approached.

"Password?"

Brittany rolled her eyes. What age was she?

"Uhm…vagina?" Brittany asked grinning.

Santana gave a low laugh at that.

"Good enough _Blondie_" the Latina said as she pushed the rope ladder down to her. Brittany watched as it tumbled to the ground, she gripped onto the sides and made her way up. Her heart stopped slightly when she reached the top and seen Santana hadn't moved, she was still lying at the threshold as they came face to face.

"Hey…" Santana smirked.

"Hi" said Brittany breathlessly, smiling back. "Uhm…can you move so I can come in?"

Santana inhaled and reached out gently grabbing her chin, coaxing her mouth open. Brittany's eyes popped open as Santana leaned forward and breathed smoke into her mouth. She quickly shut them and gave an involuntary moan when their lips grazed ever so slightly. Brittany slowly opened her eyes feeling a little hazy; Santana was smirking back at her. She moved out the way and let Brittany in.

Santana lay down on the large rug on the floor, setting her blunt down in an ashtray beside her. She grabbed a workbook Brittany recognized as the one they often use in Spanish class.

"We should probably start with something simple…" mumbled Santana as she licked her fingertip and flipped through pages.

Brittany smiled and lay down beside her, scooting closer and closer till her shoulder grazed Santana's.

"OK I'm totally ready…I think it's best if I don't look at you though cause then I'd probably like get distracted" said Brittany looking to the side at the Latina. She wondered if other people got as easily distracted as she did.

"Mhmm" Santana said smirking back, still flipping through the book.

"OK _Blondie_, weather phrases…that ain't too hard right?"

"Right" Brittany nodded determinedly at the ceiling.

Santana rolled over onto her side and propped her head up on her hand. Her face was right by Brittany's ear as she pressed her body into the blonde's side. Brittany bit her lower lip.

"Rain in Español is pronounced like lluvia, or if you wanted to say it's raining then it would be lloviendo…uh both words start with two L's but they're not pronounced…so lluvia would sound phonetically more like uvia, just pretend the L's aren't there" Santana spoke lowly into her ear.

"OK…" Brittany said slowly.

"So how do you say raining?"

"Uhm…lluvia?" Brittany said uncertainly.

"Good" smiled Santana, and it makes Brittany's heart leap to her throat. "Now…sun is pretty easy, it's said as Sol"

"Sol" Brittany repeated laughing slightly.

"But if you wanted to say it's sunny, then it would be Soleado, you say that more as 'sol-ee-ad-o'."

"Sol-ee-ad-o" Brittany repeated slowly. "Soleado" she said more quickly.

They went back and forth for an hour or so repeating various phrases. Santana would occasionally suddenly click her fingers and ask her to recite any of the words she taught her over the hour, Brittany stumbled on a few forgetting entirely but others remained in her head.

"You're a really good teacher Santana…" Brittany said admiringly. Now Santana was lying down on her back staring at the ceiling as Brittany was pressed into her side, propping her head up and looking down at deep chocolate colored eyes.

Santana made a dismissive sweeping motion with her hand and rolled her eyes.

"I'm serious" implored Brittany. "You say things and they just stick in my head…"

"Thanks" said Santana quietly. Brittany could have sworn she seen the other girl blush, that or she just imagined it.

"Your house is empty…is your mom working?" Brittany asked curiously.

Santana nodded.

"She works pretty unsociable hours, huh?" Brittany said raising her eyebrows.

"Yep…" Santana said shortly, not elaborating.

"Tell me something I don't already know abut you…" Brittany asked tentatively, sensing yet again she should change the subject.

Santana frowned.

"Like anything…what's your mom's name? What does she do? What's your favorite Film? Food? Book? Song? You have any brothers or sisters?" Brittany ran through questions, Santana looking more irked by each one.

"Favorite color?" asked Brittany desperately, scraping the barrel.

Santana just lay there staring at the ceiling stubbornly. The Latina however reached for Brittany's hand and hooked her pinky around Brittany's. She gave it a light squeeze. Brittany figured that was Santana's way of telling her she wasn't answering any of her questions but thanking her for asking them. At least, that's what her gut instinct told her. Her gut instinct was always right about Santana.

"You should go now…" Santana said softly.

"Yeah" Brittany agreed and texted her mom to come and collect her. "It's already ten past nine, time seems to fly when we're up here right?"

Santana smiled a little at her as she sat up. Brittany crawled toward the doorway and began to make her way down.

"Hey!" Santana said quickly.

Brittany climbed a step back up the rope ladder and tilted her head to the side.

"Yeah?"

"Tomorrow…you're going on a date with Finn, right?" Santana asked looking slightly uncomfortable.

Brittany nodded slowly.

"So…" Santana continued sounding caught between confusion and surprise. "Your plans haven't changed…at all?" she asked. She looked as if she had expected them to.

"I dunno, I mean…if I asked you to come as my date, would you go?" Brittany asked genuinely.

Brittany could almost see the color drain from the other girls face, almost as if she asked Santana to jump of a cliff rather than offer a simple date.

Santana shook her head slowly.

Brittany sighed as her shoulders slumped, completely unsurprised by Santana's answer.

"Then no…my plans haven't changed" she said, smiling sadly at Santana.

Santana nodded slowly, she didn't look sad or angry, just…accepting.

Later on as Brittany switched off her lamp and climbed into bed, she heard her mobile vibrate against her bedside table. She hoped it was Santana. She reached forward and grabbed it, reading the screen she smiled when she saw it was a text from Santana, it simply read:

_Red_

Brittany frowned at it; double-checking to make sure it wasn't part of another text. She quickly texted back:

_Huh? x B_

Brittany lay there in the darkness staring at the tiny screen awaiting a reply. A few seconds later and she got it:

_You asked my favorite color, it's red_

Brittany laughed a little and smiled as she tapped out her response:

_Cool, mines yellow :) x B_

She was about to place her phone by the table when she was surprised to see another incoming response. It was from Santana:

_Fitting, just like the sun…_

Brittany's heart swelled a little, she was definitely keeping this text for a while. She typed back:

_You mean the Sol? :) xB_

Literally a few seconds later and Santana replied:

_Smartass_

Brittany stifled a laugh. She frantically typed in her reply:

_That's the sweetest thing any1 has ever said to me btw…not the smartass comment lol x B_

Brittany lay in bed clutching her phone as she got a reply:

_You're welcome_

Brittany grinned and put her phone on the bedside table. This pounding of her heart and butterflies in her stomach just would not disappear, no matter how much she willed them. Maybe she wasn't being stupid; maybe she was supposed to feel this way. Maybe this is what happened when you really, really liked someone. Maybe she wouldn't fight or ignore it or even try to understand it any more, and just let it be. Brittany fell into one of the most content and deepest sleeps she's had in a log time.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hey guys sorry this is a bit late, swarmed with college work (shame I can't study in Brittana *sigh*), this chapter is almost all Brittana interaction with little plot per say but there's going to be a lot happening in the next few chapters so this feels like the calm before the storm. Oh I'm so overwhelmed with all the aler****ts, reviews etc. Glad you like reading, because I like writing this story! :D**

**/**

The following day Brittany got her work out from her locker, humming a tune happily to herself. Things were looking up, she never thought that moving to a new state, let alone a new school would be a good idea but she was beginning to feel very much at home now. She was making new friends, she was on the cheerios, she was actually coping OK with most of her classes, she was going to join the glee club, she was best friends with Quinn, her dad was coming home next week and she was getting closer to Santana. Everything was awesome. She shut her locker and looked down to the phone in her hand, staring once again at the text message she had received from Santana the night before, just to triple-check it hadn't been a dream. That yesterday hadn't been a dream.

_Fitting, just like the sun…_

Brittany grinned and bounced on her feet. If she was the sun then did that make Santana her moon?

"Hey Brittany" said Finn as he strode toward her and started fiddling with the gaps on Quinn's locker. "Are we still on for tonight?"

Brittany sighed. She was beginning to have doubts.

"I dunno, I mean…are you sure trying to make Rachel jealous is the right way to go about winning her back?" said Brittany unsurely. "I mean I'm not so sure…I don't think I'm doing this for the right reasons…"

"Hey, listen…" began Finn shooting her a friendly smile. "It's just a date. Nothing has to happen, worst-case scenario? Both our plans backfire and we get drunk and drown in our own misery"

Brittany giggled and nodded OK. "And dance!" she said enthusiastically.

"Uh…" began Finn looking really white all of a sudden. "I don't really know how, I can't dance"

Brittany gave him a wry smile and nudged him under the chin.

"Everybody can dance silly" she smiled.

He gave her an awkward look.

"Hey _Britt-Britt_" came Santana's smug voice from behind her.

Brittany did a double take and frowned in confusion. Santana had never even called her by her name before, not once – now she was suddenly 'Britt-Britt'? Had Santana fell and hit her head or something? Brittany looked to her left. Santana stood there complacently, wearing a V-neck white top that accentuated the girl's breasts and a short denim skirt. Great. Just what she needed, another day of Santana Lopez's legs and boobs mocking her.

Tingles crept up her left arm. She looked down. Oh. Santana had already grabbed her pinky with her own.

"_Finessence_" Santana stated tonelessly, finally noting Finn's presence. "So…what are we talking about?" she asked almost sarcastically, smiling sweetly between the two.

Brittany gulped. Passive-aggressive Santana was definitely the scariest kind of Santana. The barriers were back up. She suddenly felt sorry for Finn. Then again maybe she should feel sorry for herself, because she wasn't quite sure who or what Santana was mad at.

"Nothing" Finn said quickly. "So uh…I'll see you later yeah?" he directed at Brittany, not even daring to look at Santana.

She nodded and he was already gone.

Brittany turned to Santana and began swinging their pinkies.

"Santana that was mean…"

"What was?" Santana asked frowning. "Oh I'm sorry," she faux cooed, placing her other hand over her heart dramatically. "Where you about to drop to your knee's and suck him off? My bad…I shouldn't have interrupted you both…" she mocked.

"Why are you being like this?" Brittany frowned, stilling her swinging motions till their pinkies lay limply in the space between them.

"Eugh…sorry" Santana said half-heartedly, rolling her eyes. "Guess I didn't sleep much or something" she shrugged.

Brittany narrowed her eyes as realization washed over her. Santana wasn't jealous…was she?

"You're jealous" said Brittany knowingly, a small smile creeping up on her face.

"What? No I'm not" Santana said shortly, sounding mildly offended. "C'mon" she said tugging at Brittany's pinky as they both began to walk down the school hallway. They were receiving the usual confused stares. Once they arrived at English Santana was about to lead them in when Brittany tugged her back by the pinky, spinning her around to face the blonde.

"You're jealous" Brittany stated again.

Santana let go of her pinky and crossed her arms.

"Pfft you wish _Blondie_, if anything I'm relieved, if all goes well on your date tonight, you'll have somebody else to deal with your itch, maybe then you'll _finally_ leave me the hells alone and stop following me around like a lost little puppy" said Santana pouting nonchalantly and shrugging.

"Santana…" sighed Brittany, giving the Latina a sympathetic tilt of the head.

She wasn't really talking to Santana; they were talking through her barriers, she knew that. Sure, Brittany liked all sides of Santana and couldn't wait to discover other sides, but she really wished the other girl would stop being so defensive around her. She learned that people are only defensive around people they are afraid to like or extremely dislike. She hoped it wasn't the later. She knew it couldn't be.

"Whatever" said Santana rolling her eyes.

She wanted to explain to Santana that she never had a Finn itch, or a Quinn itch or a Puck itch…just a Santana itch. She didn't want to sound stupid though.

Santana suddenly clicked her fingers in front of her eyes.

"Snowing" she said simply.

Brittany frowned and was about to ask what the hell she was talking about then it hit her that Santana was asking her to recite Spanish. Crap. Snowing. Snowing. Snow and snowing were definitely different, as far as she remembered from last night.

"Uhm…nevando?" Brittany said uncertainly.

Santana's features remained stoic until a friendly smirk spread across her face. She then grabbed Brittany's hand and pulled her in sharply so they were standing incredibly close, their breasts grazing ever so slightly. Santana leaned into her ear.

"Good girl" she whispered gently.

She pulled away, flashed Brittany a smile and walked into class. Brittany leaned back against the wall and exhaled slowly. Santana was literally going to kill her one of these days, people died by melting right? Her mom would have to end up burying a pile of goo, but then who would feed Lord Tubbington?

Half way during their English class Santana and Brittany were sitting practically joined at the hip as usual. Santana tapped her wrist.

"You done with this page Britt-Britt?" she whispered.

Brittany felt a toothy grin spread across her face.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Santana frowned.

Brittany shrugged. "I just really like that nickname is all"

"I'll give you a choice then, and please be aware that this is a super rare occasion that auntie Tana here even offers this deal-"

"I thought your aunt was a ghost that was sitting on this chair?" Brittany interjected, confused.

Santana blinked. "Imma just pretend you never said that" she said holding up her hand and shaking her head. "Anyways, I offer you three choices, henceforth I will either call you _Blondie_, FYI my personal favorite, _Britt_ or any variation of that, or _Legs_. The choice is yours, what do you want be called?"

"Legs? Why legs?" asked Brittany scratching her temple.

"Your legs…" began Santana smirking and wriggling her eyebrows mischievously. She glanced down to under the table and back up meeting blue eyes. "They are super long, super distracting and as I've gotten to know, super flexible"

Brittany laughed shyly as she twiddled her pencil.

"Can't you just call me Brittany?"

"Uh don't you understand how lucky you are that I'm even giving you a choice here?" asked Santana putting a hand over her throat in mock offense.

"Fine" Brittany rolled her eyes. "Britt I guess, although only my dad calls me that"

"I guess now I do too" Santana said simply. "Now, are you finished with this page or not?"

"Almost" smiled Brittany. "But I'm confused…"

"Nothing new there" Santana deadpanned.

"I just don't understand…" Brittany continued ignoring her. "Romeo and Juliet loved each other right? So why did they not get together sooner? I don't understand…it seems like other stuff was always getting in the way"

"Because sometimes that's life…" Santana sighed almost sadly.

"That's not really an answer" countered Brittany.

"No, I guess it's not" Santana sighed.

"Neither is that"

They both locked eyes as smiles spread across their faces. Brittany loved Santana's smile, it made her heart skip a beat every time she saw it.

"Are you uhm…coming out with the rest of us tonight?" Brittany asked tentatively.

Santana's smile faded. "Eugh…I guess, Berry is insisting I go with her."

"On a date!" Brittany asked suddenly, eyebrows raised.

Santana snorted and held a finger over her mouth. A few minutes passed and Santana was still trying to stifle her laugh as her eyes began to water.

"What?" Brittany pouted. "I was being serious"

That only appeared to make Santana laugh more. Santana after controlling her laughing patted Brittany's shoulder in mock sympathy.

"Ah, thanks I needed that…and your jealousy is _sort of_ cute"

"I'm not jealous of Rachel" Brittany blurted out. She probably didn't sound all that convincing.

"And I'm not jealous of dough-boy there" said Santana nudging her head forward toward Finn in front of them.

"Good"

"Good" Santana shot back.

"Fine"

"_Fine_"

"Glad we cleared that up" Brittany stated.

"Me too" Santana hissed back.

They fell into an awkward silence that was eventually broken my Santana's soft chuckles.

"Rachel…good one…" Santana sighed wiping under her eye. "You're a lot of fun _Blondie_, uh I mean Britt"

Brittany gave her a small smile and nudged her playfully on the shoulder with her own. Santana raised her eyebrows and nudged her back. Brittany shoved her whole arm into Santana's side; the other girl countering back just as roughly.

"You two!" came Mr. Henderson's bellowing voice "Cut that out or I'll separate you both!"

Brittany and Santana looked at each other and pursed their lips. They both broke into silent giggles. This was the most fun lesson ever. Everything was better with Santana, she almost felt like they were alone up in Santana's tree house just laughing at silly things.

"I like being your friend and hanging out with you and doing…stuff…with you" Brittany whispered bashfully to the other girl. Her heart was racing. She hoped she hadn't said too much.

Santana's eye's rose from her paper and contemplated Brittany's words for a second.

"Ditto" she said simply and returned to writing.

Brittany bounced on her seat, and feeling a little braver continued. "And I really like what you done for me in the showers yesterday, uhm, I liked it a lot. I want to make you feel as good as you make me feel" the blonde whispered tentatively.

Santana stopped writing and locked eyes with blue, her gaze flickering down momentarily to Brittany's lips then back up again.

"That would mean we're fucking, and I don't fuck friends, that's practically like dating which I don't do" Santana said seriously.

"Isn't that kinda silly though?" asked Brittany tilting her head. "I mean you helped me with my itch-"

"_Exactly_" Santana cut her off. "I'm helping you with a problem, I'm just waiting for your little crush to pass."

"Why help though? If you don't get anything out of it, unless you actually like helping me" Brittany said knowingly. Brittany wasn't good with books but she was good with people and feelings. She knew for the most part when someone was lying. Santana opened her mouth to say something but slowly shut it again. She motioned with her finger for Brittany to come closer. Brittany leaned in as Santana's lips ghosted her ear.

"If you're asking whither or not I enjoyed you coming into my mouth over and over? Then yeah I did" she whispered huskily as Brittany closed her eyes and gulped thickly. "But you needs to get it into your head that you and I will never be anything more than friends, we clear?"

Brittany pulled away as her heart sank a little. The bell rang out. As Santana stood up and began to walk away Brittany reached and grabbed her wrist, spinning her back around.

"And _you _need to get it into your head that you don't have control over everything…because sometimes that's life…" she said confidently, mimicking Santana's earlier words. The blonde strode out before Santana could open her mouth to reply.

Later on Brittany walked into Spanish, the last lesson of the school week, cracking her neck, cheer-leading practice had really taken it out of her. She walked toward the back, but then eyed the empty seat next to Rachel. Shooting Santana a defiant look she put her bag down and sat down next to Rachel. Brittany glanced backwards.

"Uh…what the hell?" said Santana holding out her hands in an exaggerated shrugging pose.

"I'm sitting next to my friend Rachel today" Brittany said firmly.

"Why thank you!" Rachel beamed at her.

"Get back here" hissed Santana.

Brittany shook her head and ignored her. She turned around and watched Mr. Shue write today's assignment on the board.

"Fine…whatever…" came Santana's voice from behind.

Rachel gave Brittany a knowing look as they both smiled.

"You know…" Rachel began in a low voice as if she were about to divulge some personal secret to Brittany. "I plan to have a Sapphic fling one day, of course I'll be married to my famous actor husband, but then alas suddenly one day I'll be on set and I'll fall in love with another woman. Of course I plan to let all my emotional turmoil out by writing my very own play about it, which will then _of course_ go on to be a very big Broadway hit which I will obviously star in, _perhaps _it will even go on to win a Tony, I honestly haven't decided yet. Furthermore, although _yes_ it may sound somewhat conceited and _yes _a little out there-"

Brittany blinked at Rachel and spaced out; just watching dumbly as Rachel's mouth moved but no longer hearing the words. Boy, this girl sure did talk a lot. It might be easier to listen if she knew what the hell she was talking about in the first place.

Thud.

Brittany was pushed forward on her seat. She frowned as she realized Santana had kicked the back of her chair from behind. She huffed; she wasn't going to give the other girl the satisfaction. She ignored her.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Brittany jerked forward in quick successions. Beginning to feel mad, she spun around.

"Quit it" she said forcefully.

"Quit what?" smirked Santana feigning innocence.

Perhaps sensing an oncoming argument Rachel spoke up. "Uh, I'm going to ask Mr. Shue's permission to go to the little ladies room, excuse me…" she said as she got up and headed toward the front of the class; shooting Santana a stern stare, one that a mother would their misbehaving child. Brittany rolled her eyes and turned around, she began writing her Spanish notes from the board.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Brittany felt rage bubble up from the pit of her stomach. Somehow Santana seemed to sense it before she erupted.

"Daww c'mon _Britt-Britt_, isn't this what you've always wanted?" she said sweetly. "Me _banging _you from behind?"

Brittany felt embarrassment, shock and humiliation creep up and tinge her cheeks.

"You just totally creamed your pants at that, didn't you?" husked Santana's voice from behind her, chuckling softly.

"Shut up" Brittany said turning around in her chair.

"You really shouldn't talk to me like that" Santana said lowly biting her bottom lip. "You know I like it when you're mad" she smirked.

Brittany felt word vomit come up before she could stop herself.

"You're unbelievable and arrogant…and…jealous…I'm not your play thing Santana, I'm not here to entertain you or for you to laugh at or play with when you get bored. I have feelings. I like you, and I like being your friend, but…but…sometimes you can be a bitch, which is totally sad because I know it's just an act, nobody else knows it is but I do and Rachel does. I just…I just need you to know that, whatever you feel the need to do around other people, you don't have to do around me, cause I can already read you like a book and I don't read much books. So there's no need to pretend around me, there's no need for your barriers, cause I think you're pretty awesome without them, you know?"

Santana's scowl softened as she simply stared at Brittany looking slightly dumbfounded, maybe even a little touched.

"Whatever" Santana mumbled.

Santana never kicked her chair or spoke another word for the rest of the lesson.

Later on that night, Brittany and Finn were standing at the end of a queue outside the nightclub, fake ID's in hand (provided by Puck who was a few spaces in front of them). Brittany had decided to wear a short golden dress that shimmered, with cream pumps and left her hair down and wavy. She completed her look by putting cream-colored legwarmers on her arms – Finn said she looked oddly normal. She figured that was a compliment.

"Hello!" came someone's voice from behind them.

They both spun around to meet a rather normally dressed Rachel, and leaning on her shoulder casually was Santana. The Latina was wearing skinny jeans with a cream corset that had black lace intricacies. It looked incredibly tight, so tight that her boobs were practically spilling over the top.

"Boobs" Brittany blurted out. Her eyes widened. Crap. She didn't mean to say that. The other three just laughed.

"Hey Rach…you look pretty" Finn said awkwardly.

"Hello Finn" she replied coldly.

Brittany looked up at him. Poor Finn, she didn't think his plan would work at all.

Once inside they all spent half an hour buying and trying various alcohol mixtures, Brittany had several mojitos and everything was spinning. Strobes of pink, lavender and blue lights flashed all around her as heavy pulsating music pounded the inside of her ears. Brittany and Finn were sitting on one side of the bar. She looked to Santana who was across the other side talking with a girl with blonde hair and whispering things in her ear. Was she flirting with a girl? How did she do that? How did somebody just have the confidence like that? Or did people approach her? She didn't blame them, Santana was very…alluring. She watched as Santana picked the olive out of her drink and swirled it around her tongue, brown orbs then flickered over to her; she winked teasingly and resumed her conversation. Brittany scowled.

"C'mon…" she said grabbing Finn by the sleeve. "We're dancing…"

Turns out not everyone can dance like she thought, still he gave it try. Brittany lost herself in the music and momentarily forgot all about Santana and that stupid blonde and just let her body spin and grind. Dancing was her one outlet. It was the best thing about her, the only thing she felt she was truly good at. Throughout the night Brittany would steal glances toward the bar – Santana and stupid blonde were still sitting there, although they appeared to be closer and closer every time she looked. Whatever. She danced more with Finn (or danced beside Finn), then with Puck, then with some other guy she had no idea who he was, and then with Rachel. She had to admit, for the lack of Santana, she was actually having fun.

When she went back to the bar to get drinks though she looked across to where Santana was sitting. She felt like she swallowed a brick and it was now sitting in her stomach and weighing her uncomfortably down. Santana had her hand around blonde's neck and her tongue practically down her throat. Brittany blinked, she wanted to look away but she just couldn't. She felt sick. Why did it bother her though? Santana wasn't hers, she was a big girl, and she could do whatever she likes. _Whoever _she likes. Crap. She needed to get out of here. She told Rachel she needed air and quickly left through the front entrance.

She walked aimlessly across the sidewalk and slumped down under a flickering orange lamppost that was buzzing away in an otherwise silent street. All that could be heard was the music from the club and the persistent buzzing and flickering from the light above her. She looked over to the side; the clubs bouncer was just looking at her as if she were drunk. Maybe she was. She did feel sick, but it had nothing to do with alcohol. She didn't know how long she has sat there before she heard a group of people leaving the club and arguing. She craned her neck back around. It was the blonde, Santana and a tall guy. What was going on? She stood up and steadied herself against the lamppost.

"It didn't mean anything I swear!" the blonde said. God, her voice was annoying.

"Oh really? That's not what you were saying in the bathroom _perra_, I believe your exact words were 'oh Santana, show me how girls fuck'" said Santana placing a hand over her chest and laughing.

"Whatever" came the guys voice as he grabbed the blonde's hand. "Leave my girlfriend alone…as for you" he directed at the girl he was now dragging away. "We'll talk about this once we get home". They began walking away from the club.

"Hasta luego! Ain't my fault you can't keep your girlfriend satisfied with your tiny dick" Santana slurred after them, wiggling her pinky finger mockingly at him. The guy gave her the finger as they walked further away. Chuckling Santana spun around and met Brittany's gaze a few feet away from her. Her smile faded.

"Britt-Britt?" she asked, she sounded both surprised and worried. "What…wha…what are you like doing outside, out…out of the…building?"

Brittany raised her eyebrows. Santana was drunk, not just tipsy but drunk, she could tell.

"I needed some air, truth is I feel like going home…" she said quietly, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

"Did Finn upset you? Cause I will chop that tree down" began Santana.

Brittany laughed softly and shook her head.

"OK well I'll uh…I'll…I'll…" Santana trailed and looked to the sky curiously. "What's the word I'm looking for?" she asked clicking her fingers frantically at Brittany.

Brittany blinked at her, she had no idea.

"Call!" she shouted rather loudly, pointing at Brittany and staggering closer to her. "I'll call you a cab and…you know what? Fuck it, I'll call us a cab, you can come back to mine"

"A-are you sure?"

"Yeah! Sure! No problemo!" Santana said waving her hand at her.

Brittany sighed. This would perhaps be a long night.

She heard Santana mumble into her iPhone, Brittany didn't know the area so she hoped Santana was sober enough to remember where they were.

"10 minutes" came Santana's voice.

Brittany turned back around and Santana was swaying on the spot slightly holding up her 10 fingers, almost doing a jazz hand motion.

"You're drunk" Brittany giggled.

Santana came forward to stand in front of her.

"Sshh…don't tell anyone" she whispered, looking around cautiously.

Brittany giggled even more. She felt like she wanted to be mad at Santana but she just couldn't be. Not now, especially when she had never seen the Latina look so…small and fragile almost. She wanted to just wrap her arms around her and hug her for some reason. They stood under the lamp for a few minutes in silence, Santana just swaying slightly and blinking very slowly. Brittany then tilted her head and Santana looked different somehow…

"A-are you crying?"

Santana nodded frantically and faced her completely. Her eyes were watering.

"I mean…just look!" she said dramatically, pointing over to the other side of the street.

Brittany looked across frowning, there was a closed shop and a parked car, but she couldn't see anything else.

"No…look! The fire…fire…thing…what do you call them?"

Brittany gave her an absurd look and tried to figure out what she was saying. Fire?

"Oh!" Brittany said quickly "You mean the fire hydrant?" she said spotting one across the street.

"Yup…I mean…" began Santana sniffing a little. "It's just there…red…stuck…stuck all alone, I mean, doesn't that just suck?" she said as if it were some great travesty of justice.

Oh boy. Weepy drunk Santana.

Brittany couldn't stop laughing till the cab came; the sides of her abs were beginning to hurt from laughing so much. Santana didn't look amused.

"It's serious…I'm serious…" she mumbled as she collapsed into the cab.

The cab ride home was quiet at first, the driver shooting them the occasional curious look in the rear-view mirror.

"Hey…" Santana said quietly, tapping her on the knee. "I…I didn't do anything with that girl in the bathroom…"

"Oh…" Brittany said slowly, feeling awkward. She hadn't expected this to come up.

"I mean…" Santana continued looking at her and blinking slowly. "It's not like I didn't try but like…I just suddenly stopped, you know? Like I looked her in the eyes and I just thought…"

"Thought?" Brittany urged her on, biting her lower lip.

"Her eyes were too green…"

"Oh…" sighed Brittany, that hadn't been the answer she was expecting.

"Then I just thought…I'd rather stick my fingers in a shredder."

They both burst out laughing, the driver shooting them a scowl.

"Seriously though, what does it mean? I normally just do it…but like now, tonight? I just…didn't want to, isn't that weird? Am I getting old?" she asked, looking genuinely confused.

Brittany smiled at her and felt like a warm blanket had been wrapped around her heart. This girl was doing things to her, she didn't know what, and that scared her a little. Life was confusing enough for her, she often found people the least confusing - Santana seemed to saunter into her life and messed with that notion entirely.

"We're all getting older" Brittany smiled.

"I guess…" sighed Santana as she lay down and put her head on Brittany's lap. She instantly fell asleep and Brittany stroked her hair, lost in thought for the rest of the journey.

Once they got to Santana's, they took off their shoes and headed to the kitchen. Brittany felt her stomach flip, as this was exactly what happened on Sunday, she pushed the thought from her mind though. Santana had sobered up a little from her sleep and now with two tall glasses of water down her was slightly more compos mentis. They had been in the kitchen for 20 minutes mostly in silence as Brittany watched Santana gulp down water.

"You OK?" Brittany asked smiling slightly.

Santana nodded. "Feel kind of sick though, Imma head to the toilet" she said as she stumbled slightly.

"Wow, OK I'll come with you" Brittany said gently as she led Santana up the stairs. She sort of liked taking care of her. The house was very cold and dark as they made their way down the hall and toward the toilet.

Santana stumbled around in the darkness and eventually flicked the bathroom light on. Brittany was slightly tipsy herself but right now she felt like the more sober of the two.

"Careful" Brittany said gently as she grabbed Santana's arm to steady her. "Here, sit down on the floor"

Santana slumped pretty quickly down on the cold, cream-colored tile floor. She lifted the toilet seat and just flung her arms over it, resting her head on her arms. Brittany slowly sat down opposite her. She took this opportunity to look around. The bathroom was huge and fancy. A large tub was at the far corner that also doubled up as a shower.

Santana raised her head and just blinked lazily at her.

"You gonna puke?" Brittany asked.

She shook her head.

"Just feel like you're gonna puke?" Brittany said sympathetically.

"I guess" sighed Santana shrugging. She patted her stomach. "Get this thing off me, I feel like I can hardly freakin' breathe"

Brittany laughed a little. "OK" she said as she scrambled and crawled behind Santana, her knee's pressing into the stone cold floor. She sat behind Santana and slowly untied the laces that were knotted up at the back, each time bare flesh of Santana's back coming into view. Brittany tried to steady her breathing and just concentrate on getting to the bottom. Once the laces were loose she just left it draped around Santana and moved back across to sit opposite her. Santana sighed, and then slowly lay back flat on the floor.

"Hey…" Brittany said tenderly scooting back, coming beside Santana and looking down at her. "The floor's hard and cold, if you want to lie down, I can put you to bed if you want?"

Santana slowly opened her eyes and looked up into Brittany's. The blonde felt her own breathing hitch; Santana's eyes looked a lot lighter and her raven hair was sprawled out behind her head on the floor, framing her face perfectly. Brittany watched as Santana slowly brought her hands behind her back, taking off her corset – she flung it aimlessly to one corner of the bathroom. Brittany's eye's bulged as her mouth opened then shut again. She looked down at Santana's naked torso in awe. Tanned skin, defined abs that twitched slightly as her back fell met the cold floor again, perfectly round breasts. There was a thin layer of sweat covering the Latina's lower body where her corset had been, it reflected and bounced of the light deliciously. Brittany shook her head and looked up into brown eyes. Santana was merely looking at her with a relaxed smile on her face. She was either still slightly drunk or very at ease. She guessed both.

"You're beautiful" Brittany said quietly, looking into brown orbs.

She swore she seen Santana blush as she playfully rolled her eyes.

"What? You _are_…" Brittany said more adamantly, smiling down at her.

"Thanks" she said equally as quiet. "But…" Santana seemed to hesitate shifting her eyes downwards. "Uh…they're fake"

"What's fake?" Brittany asked confused.

"My tits…boobs…whatever…" Santana sighed loudly, as if she had been discussing the topic for hours on end and was now bored with it.

"Oh…" Brittany said her mouth forming an 'O' shape as she processed this new information. "OK cool"

Their eyes locked again as they delved into a brief silence.

"That's it? That's all you have to say?" Santana said quickly arching her eyebrow. She seemed slightly annoyed by Brittany's response.

"Well yeah, what do you want me to say?"

"Oh I don't know, aren't you going to judge or lecture me? Ask me a bunch of questions?" she asked frowning slightly, her tone laced with bemusement.

"Well uhm no cause…well first of all? When I said you were beautiful I was talking mostly about your eyes, although your boobs are beautiful too, don't get me wrong, I mean they look super bouncy and soft and…"

Brittany trailed her rambling as Santana started laughing slightly. She was looking up into blue with a warm smile on her face and her eyes brimming with amusement. Brittany's heart swelled as she smiled back.

"You want my opinion though?" Brittany asked.

"I want your opinion" confirmed Santana softly, her smile fading a little.

"I don't know why someone as beautiful and smart as you would change anything about themselves, you're perfect just the way you are" said Brittany.

Santana's head lulled to the side slightly. "Nobody's perfect" she mumbled looking away, almost as if she were afraid to say it louder.

"You misunderstand," said Brittany shaking her head. "Perfection isn't about being perfect. It's about seeing an imperfect person - perfectly, and I think you're perfect so…"

Santana sat up quickly, their faces inches apart. Brown eyes flickered down to Brittany's lips and back up. Brittany's eyes fell down to Santana's plump lips and slowly back up. Her heart was pounding; they were surely thinking the same thing. Brittany swallowed audibly as Santana leaned forward and rested her forehead against Brittany's, their noses grazing coyly. Tingles. Santana's eyes locked with Brittany's, she almost felt lost in that ocean of deep brown.

"I've never met anyone like you" Santana said quietly, her eyes staring deep into Brittany's blue.

Brittany wanted to say the same back but her mind was numb, defunct at the fact that they were this close, that Santana was looking at her like that, that their breaths were twisting together, that their lips were so close. Santana suddenly took a sharp intake of air and pulled her face away.

"We should go to bed…" she said, her eyes growing wide a little. "I mean…to sleep" she clarified once more. "I'm tired" she added.

"OK" Brittany said nodding slowly as she helped the other girl stand, trying her best to maintain eye contact.

It was probably for the best, they had both been drinking and Santana not 5 minutes ago thought she was going to vomit. This wasn't how they were supposed to happen, if they were even supposed to happen Brittany thought glumly. They went through to Santana's bedroom and changed into tops and sweat pants. They were both shivering the house was really cold despite being the middle of summer.

"It wasn't this cold on Sunday when I stayed at yours" Brittany noted crawling into bed and pulling the covers all the way up.

"I forgot to leave the heating on before I left" mumbled Santana as she dropped onto the bed and shifting under the covers.

"Oh…"

They fell into a silence, and Brittany could hear that they were both shivering slightly.

"Uhm…" she spoke into the darkness. "We could always cuddle?"

"W-what?" came Santana's voice.

"You know cause body heat is the best way to warm up, well I'll just scoot to the middle of the bed and if you want you can come over beside me, OK?" Brittany said into the darkness as she shifted to the middle still lying on her back.

Silence.

She felt the mattress dip slightly as Santana shifted closer to her. Brittany smiled.

"Just FYI, this is only because I'm cold, OK?" came Santana's annoyed voice, though not entirely convincing.

"OK" Brittany laughed slightly.

Before she knew it Santana pressed up into her side, laid her head on the blondes chest and flung a leg around her waist, pulling her in closer. Santana gently traced the edge of Brittany's tank top, then rested her palm directly over Brittany's heart.

And her heart was pounding away, thudding, thudding like Santana had been kicking her chair. She swallowed apprehensively and tried to breathe but she couldn't – there was just something about Santana that made her feel like a nervous wreck but completely calm at the same time. Brittany's stomach began to churn.

"Brittany…" Santana said calmly, her voice muffled by the material of Brittany's top. "Your heart's beating like crazy…calm down…" she said patting her palm gently over her heart.

Brittany was momentarily sidetracked by how odd Santana sounded saying her full name for the first time.

"Yeah…" Brittany breathed. "Sorry it's just…I guess I should tell you that I'm not a good sleeper, I actually…uh…have a problem"

"A problem?"

"Mhmm" Brittany hummed uncertainly. Why was she dredging all this up now?

"You can tell me anything you want" whispered Santana. That just made Brittany's heart thump louder. Santana seemed to notice because she began slowly patting over her heart, perhaps hoping that it would fall into the same slow rhythm.

"Well…" Brittany began, staring idly at the ceiling. Here goes nothing. "I have anxiety issues, well not really issues, but sleep issues. My therapist said…uh yeah I used to see a therapist…said that it was anxiety about when my dad was away and I sort of started having like night terrors? Uhm, they got worse over time and so when I went to get help they said my dreams were linked to my worry over my dad, which duh…anyways sometimes the dreams would get so bad, although I can never really remember them…anyways they would get so bad that I'd break out in a cold sweat and sometimes…I uh…wet the bed" she said hesitantly.

Santana stilled the patting of her palm.

"But" Brittany began quickly. "But it's not as bad now…I mean I go to sleep with my dad's hat cause it smells like him, my therapist said it was a comfort thing but…I dunno…so it's not as bad now I guess, but I don't have his hat here. Although to be honest I haven't had a night terror since…" she trailed. She was going to say '_since meeting you_' but refrained. "Since starting McKinley, which is weird huh? I guess I just have other things to dream and worry about I guess…"

They fell into another silence. Brittany felt the need to speak but didn't know what more she could say.

"Sorry I guess I should have told you on Sunday but…"

"Is that all?" Santana suddenly asked.

"Uh…yeah…"

"Oh OK then, good night" mumbled Santana.

"Wait, that's it? That's all you have to say?" Brittany asked suddenly. Brittany's head spun, she could have sworn they had a similar conversation not 5 minutes ago, but reversed.

"Well…" sighed Santana. "Are you telling me there's a chance you're going to piss all over me because you don't have a god damn hat next to you?"

Brittany blushed. It sounded so stupid when Santana said it like that, but it was the truth.

"Uh yeah…basically…" she mumbled, embarrassed.

"Well it ain't exactly high on my list of fetishes…" Santana joked. "But I'm too comfortable to move so…if you piss on me you're cleaning my bed _Blondie. _Uh, for future reference – I'm allowed to make jokes about this, right?" Santana asked sassily but with seriousness.

"Well, I'd rather you didn't…" Brittany sighed, smiling. Her heartbeat was beginning to slow. Was this really all OK?

"Shame, I already came up with several nick names…" sighed Santana as she yawned into her chest.

"Thanks Santana" Brittany said softly, feeling comfort and relief wash over her.

"For what?"

"E-everything…"

"You're welcome" Santana mumbled back, sounding half-asleep.

Brittany stared at the ceiling in the darkness, if she had to guess then an hour had passed and she still wasn't asleep, but she was beginning to feel tired. Santana was definitely asleep; her breathing was slow and rhythmic, as the grip around her loosened. She must be in a good sleep Brittany thought, because she hadn't moved at all. Brittany leaned her head down to Santana's hair and inhaled silently. Coconuts. Maybe she didn't need her dad's hat after all she thought, as her eyelids grew heavy. She liked Santana, liked her a lot and they were definitely friends now but she couldn't quite shake the feeling of emptiness. Isn't this what she wanted? To be Santana's friend? Then why did she suddenly feel sad? Like she hadn't quite achieved something? Like this wasn't quite enough? She yawned feeling sleep take over. She never felt this way about anyone before, girl or boy. Her dad was back in a few days, and he was the only person she could tell anything to, he'd make sense of it, she was sure. She'd only have to hold out for a few more days, and then things would make sense. That was perfectly doable she thought as slumber took over.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Update Y'all! (yeah...sorry to remind you about that line lol)**

**/**

Brittany groaned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, slowly taking in her surroundings. Her vision became less blurry as Santana's room came into focus. She instinctively looked down to where the other girl had fallen asleep on her, only for her not to be there at all. Sitting bolt upright, she quickly threw over the covers and looked down between her legs. She exhaled in relief. She was dry. She made her way downstairs to find Santana laying down on the sofa, eating popcorn and, unbelievably, watching Sponge Bob Square Pants. Brittany snorted. Santana sat up and looked to threshold where she was standing. Brittany smiled as she took in her appearance – incredibly see-through white t-shirt and grey sweat pants and yes Brittany had noted her lack of bra still. Santana's hair was messed and tussled up at the back. Brittany couldn't help but feel endeared by it.

"This show is freakin' awesome, OK?" Santana said defensively, almost childishly.

"I know" sang Brittany as she skipped over toward her and dropped down beside her. "I love this show too"

"You do?"

Brittany nodded. "I take it you're feeling better this morning?"

"Headache, that's all" Santana shrugged. "Although…" she began slowly as she spun around and crossed both her legs on the sofa, facing Brittany. "You're going to have to help me out Britt, I remember everything from getting out the cab outside my house to us going to bed, but…anything before that? Nada…not a thing…"

"Afraid I can't help you _much _there Santana" Brittany smiled smugly, stealing some popcorn and throwing it into her mouth playfully.

Santana frowned.

"I spent most of the night with everyone else" Brittany clarified. "_You_ on the other hand seemed busy with someone else" she added sourly.

She saw realization crawl onto Santana's features.

"The blonde…" Santana mumbled.

"The blonde" Brittany said sternly, nodding once.

"Tell me what you know, please" Santana making a begging motion with her palms together.

"Not much…" Brittany sighed looking around the living room. "You were making out with said blonde at the bar, I left so I didn't see what happened after that but you came out after a while with the girl and her boyfriend"

"That's right…" Santana mumbled in thought.

"He wasn't too happy, something about you and her hooking up in the toilets or something? Anyways that's about it…" said Brittany, trying to appear neutral.

"Wait…what else?" Santana asked frowning.

"Well…" Brittany started slowly, her lips forming a smirk. "You were crying at a fire hydrant"

"A fire hydrant?" repeated Santana, looking perplexed.

"Yup…you said it looked red or lonely or something and you were crying because of it" Brittany said beginning to giggle.

Santana gave a low laugh putting a palm over her face in humiliation as she placed the popcorn bowl in-between them.

"Also…" began Brittany more timidly. "You told me, like in the cab on the way home? That nothing happened between you and that girl, you said her eye's were-"

"Weren't blue" Santana finished for her. "Yeah, I remember…" she mumbled.

Brittany stuttered for a second and tilted her head in puzzlement. "Uh…no that's not what you said" she stated. "You said they were too green"

"Oh…oh!" Santana said her eyes going wide for a second. "Yeah that's what I meant…uh…yeah"

Brittany's eyes narrowed skeptically at her as they fell into an odd silence. Brittany's head was flipping through thoughts – blonde hair, blue eyes? Brittany had those. Could it be…?

"Hey uhm-"

"We uh…" Santana interjected suddenly grabbing the bowl of popcorn and standing up abruptly. "We shouldn't be having popcorn for breakfast, I'll make us something to eat out...eat! I mean _eat_, I'll make us something to eat…"

Brittany's eyebrows rose as she tried hard not to laugh. She had never seen Santana look so flustered before.

"You like toast and tea?"

"Sure" Brittany nodded, forcing down her smile.

"OK, then that's what we'll have" Santana nodded, more to herself than Brittany as she departed to the kitchen.

Brittany twiddled with the ring on her middle finger. That was odd.

Five minutes later and the two were sitting huddled on the sofa eating toast and watching cartoons. Santana put down her plate on the coffee table situated in the middle of the seating area and turned to Brittany.

"So…" Santana said after sipping some tea. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked vaguely, her eyes seeking out Brittany's.

"Talk about what?" she asked confused, setting down her own plate.

Santana's eyes moved away for a second, and then met blue once again with an almost soothing gaze. "About what you told me last night. Your sleep problem?"

"Oh…" Brittany mouthed, feeling her heartbeat stop a little; she had hoped Santana forgot about that. "Uh…no, not really. I mean, there's nothing much to tell is there?"

"Isn't there?" Santana countered curiously.

"No. I just wanna say thanks again, cause you didn't freak out on me or make a big deal or anything"

Santana shrugged then nodded, looking down into her tea. She started running a finger around the edge attentively. "Well, if you ever want to talk about it…or anything really…uh…I'm here" she said awkwardly, still staring down into her cup.

"Thanks" Brittany mumbled bashfully, tucking her blonde hair behind her ears.

She suddenly froze when Santana leaned forward and softly tucked a remaining strand of hair behind her ear, her fingers grazing ever so slightly on the side of her face. How did she make everything so tingly? Was her skin made of something magical?

"Blondie" Santana smiled at her, retracting her hand.

Brittany skewed her mouth. "You only call me that cause you think I'm a dumb blonde"

"Oh really now?" Santana's eyebrows shot up. "Is that what you think?" she asked. She seemed amused as she set down her cup on the table.

"Isn't it?"

"If I thought you were being dumb, I'd say so. No, _Blondie_ I like…I like your blonde hair, it's bright just like the sun."

"El Sol?" Brittany grinned.

"Sí…" Santana smiled warmly back.

Brittany's heart sped up a little so she looked around for a non-existent distraction, but curiosity was gnawing at her.

"You were going to kiss me last night…" Brittany stated quietly.

Santana's eyes looked wide and vulnerable for a moment, darting quickly between each of Brittany's eyes.

"Yeah well…had too much to drink, didn't I?"

"I don't get it though, you were kissing that other girl no problem but then you freak out when we get close. I mean uhm, that doesn't make much sense does it? You're totally fine with going down on me in the shower room but you freak out over a hug and a kiss?" Brittany asked curiously.

"I don't know do I?" Santana said looking caught between embarrassment and annoyance. "Look, can we talk about something else?" she asked quickly, looking uncomfortable once more.

"Do you not like me or something?" Brittany pouted.

Santana gave a loud sigh. "Of course I like you" she mumbled.

"You know…" Brittany began coyly, her eyes running down Santana's front. "I've always wanted to call somebody my girlfriend, I've only ever went out with a guy…I dunno I guess I've just wanted to say girlfriend out loud…is that stupid?"

"That's not stupid" Santana smiled forlornly at her. "But I know where this is going, so for your own sake you should probably change the subject."

"Right…" Brittany said dejected, feeling something suddenly stab at her heart.

There was a long awkward silence.

"So…your house is empty again-"

"My mom's at work" Santana interjected quickly. The atmosphere was tense you could cut it with a knife.

"Yeah but on a Saturday? Every time I'm over here she's always at work, what does she do?" Brittany asked inquisitively.

"Eugh…" began Santana crossing her arms defensively and looking irked. "Since you seem so god damn interested…she's a singer OK?"

"A singer?" Brittany repeated, surprised. "Oh my god! Is your mom like famous or something?" she gaped.

Santana snorted. "Uh…no."

Brittany felt the previous uneasiness fade a little. She leaned forward and casually picked off a piece of fluff that was on Santana's t-shirt.

"Oh well that's still cool, your mom sounds cool" Brittany chirped positively.

"Yeah…" Santana sighed almost sadly as her crossed arms became lax and eventually unfolded.

"I don't get it though…is she away a lot?"

At this Santana gave her a look she never seen before. Her eyes looked glassy as her face dropped, and if Santana could even look pale, well she certainly did now.

"It's just…" she began her voice wavering. She started twiddling her fingers together and couldn't make eye contact. Brittany had never seen her look so out of her depth. "Yeah she's a way a lot" Santana confirmed nodding, momentarily looking Brittany in the eye but then darting back to her hands.

Brittany shifted closer to her on the sofa, letting Santana know she could elaborate.

"She's a cruise singer. She has a job working on one of those big fancy cruise ships that goes around the Atlantic, sometimes on the coast of Australia too…since dad left us…she managed to get a good job, and she gets paid a lot and it's hard being a single parent so…"

Brittany just nodded and without thinking about it reached her hand out and placed it over Santana's. The Latina stopped fiddling with her hands and looked up to gaze at Brittany. Brittany began rubbing her thumb in small circular motions over the back of the other girl's hand.

"So…when's the last time she was home?" Brittany asked, trying to change the tone without changing the topic.

Santana pursed her lips and looked up in thought. "End of April I guess…"

"A-April!" Brittany stuttered and let go of the other girl's hand. "But it's like August…" Brittany trailed and looked to Santana, suddenly finding a lot of things clicking into place in her mind. Santana looked sullen and simply shifted her eyes to look elsewhere; she looked sad and embarrassed. "So wait..." Brittany began slowly, realization suddenly seeping in. "You basically live here…on your own?"

"My mom's here sometimes and my Abuela visits" Santana said quickly. "This is the longest mom's been away, summer is the busiest time in her work…but it depends where she's sent, sometimes she's only a way for a few weeks and is back home for a few weeks…sometimes…longer…"

"But you basically live here alone?" Brittany asked astounded.

"Most of the time…yeah…" Santana shrugged a little and blinked, looking away. She chewed her large bottom lip. Brittany thought she looked like she was about to cry. Crap. She didn't mean to upset her. Her mouth was already moving before she could stop it though.

"But…but…" she said, struggling to even comprehend such a situation. "What about birthdays? And Christmas? Who locks your door at nights? Who helps with homework and makes your dinner and stuff?"

"You think I can't take care of myself?" Santana snapped sounding offended. Tears were now brimming her eyes but refusing to fall. Crap. Brittany felt like she just opened a whole can of worms and was now desperately trying to put the lid back on.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to suggest…I…" Brittany struggled. She wanted to lean forward and hug her but figured she should proceed with caution. "It's just I…uhm…let's just sit and watch cartoons OK?" she suggested. She felt stupid at how pathetic an idea that sounded.

Santana however just nodded solemnly down at her lap, wiping under one of her eyes. They sat on the sofa properly and simply stared at the TV. Brittany felt bad. She leaned her head down and rested it on the Latina's shoulder, she felt the girl tense for a second but then relax. Brittany could feel the other girl's body heave a little, as if suppressing tiny little sobs. She figured she shouldn't say anything or even acknowledge she was crying. Brittany initiated a pinky-link by holding out her own. She held it out for a moment and was about to drop her hand when Santana wrapped her own around it. Their hands fell between them as Brittany snuggled in further on Santana's shoulder watching the TV vaguely. Santana's body relaxed after a while.

"Thanks" she heard Santana say quietly.

"Mhhm? For what?" Brittany asked staring idly at the TV.

"E-everything…" Santana said, echoing what Brittany had said to her last night.

Wednesday. It was Wednesday and her dad still wasn't back, he was supposed to be here on Monday. Well technically her father didn't know when he'd be home and that it would only be some day this week, but it was already Wednesday. Brittany was in English and was nervously twiddling her pencil whilst tapping her foot against the stool leg irritably; she hardly had any sleep in the past three days. Her mom had told her that communication with her dad's unit was bad and that she hadn't heard anything further. Something must've happened. Why wasn't he home already? The blonde put her pencil down and started tapping her fingertips on the table, only half-listening to her teacher. A warm hand suddenly clasped over her own, stilling its movement. Brittany stopped her tapping and looked down to the source of the comforting tingling blanket now covering her hand. She took a deep breath and looked to her side at Santana. Today she was sporting a black, loose hanging Bob Marley t-shirt with a short denim skirt. Brittany glanced back down at Santana's hand covering her own, and for some reason liked the contrast of their skin tones.

"Are you OK Britt-Britt?" she whispered, looking at her with a worried furrow of her brow.

Brittany had no idea why; she felt a lump form in her throat as she tried to blink away tears. She gripped onto Santana's hand tightly. It was rather uncanny how Santana managed to easily invoke emotions from her, no matter how varied in nature they were.

"Uh…" Brittany began, her voice hoarse and trembling slightly. She cleared her throat quietly. "Honestly? No. My dad's still not back and we can't contact him and I haven't had much sleep and I'm not eating much and cheerios is super hard without eating stuff and my mom's nervous too so she like snaps and get's mad at me for everything…more so than usual… and I feel like I can't breathe in my own house…and like I just can't…" Brittany heard her own voice fade. She had no idea what she was saying anymore. She looked up into deep hazel eyes. "I'm just too tired" she finished meekly.

Santana gave her a small sympathetic smile and let go of her hand.

"Well…" the other girl began. "How about you come stay at mine?" she suggested.

Brittany raised her eyebrows.

"I mean for as long as you like" Santana continued biting her lower lip a little. "And _when _your dad comes home I promise I'll drive you straight back to your house the moment he does, even if it's three in the freakin' morning"

Brittany felt a small smile tug the corner of her mouth, and something bigger tug at her heart.

"I can…help you sleep?" Santana continued, smiling a little bashfully. "OK crap, I don't know Britt, just come to mine and at least that way you're away from your mom and we can do whatever the hell you like" she finished unequivocally, clearly not knowing what else to suggest.

"And how would you help me sleep?" Brittany asked curiously, smiling a little.

"Shit…I don't know do I? Sing to you? Read you a book? Hit you over the head with a baseball bat?" Santana suggested.

Brittany laughed a little and twiddled the end of her ponytail.

"Thanks Santana…I'd like that…staying at yours that is" she smiled.

Santana smiled and nodded, her smile reaching her eyes. They both sat grinning stupidly at each other for a few seconds, and then both started laughing nervously.

"What?" asked Santana, unable to keep the smile from her face.

"Nothing it's just…" Brittany began shyly, reaching below the table and grabbing a hold of Santana's hand once more. Santana didn't object and to Brittany's surprise even interlocked their fingers. "It's just you've managed to make my heart feel a little less is all…"

"A little less heavy huh?" Santana smirked. "Glad I could return the favor"

"Huh? What favor?"

"Never mind…" she said smiling, shaking her head and letting her hand go.

Mr. Henderson started handing out yellow books; he eventually came to stand in front of them.

"Good news girls, we're done with Shakespeare and we're moving onto a new book. In fact this is one of the books you can base your end of year written exam on, and we've got plenty of supplies so you two will no longer need to share" he informed them.

"Fascinating" Santana deadpanned rolling her eyes.

"Yes well…" he coughed awkwardly and diverted his attention to Brittany. "I think you'll like this one – it's called 'Lord Of The Flies'"

"Don't you mean 'Lord Of The Rings'? Brittany asked confused, scrunching up her nose.

Santana held a finger over her mouth to suppress a laugh.

"Uh no Brittany…" he said putting down two books, which Brittany saw was in fact called 'Lord Of The Flies'.

"Well what's it about?" she asked. "Cause I'm not good with books. Well I am good with books that have stuff that I'm interested in. I mean like I just find stuff easier to understand when I actually find it interesting, you know? I have a few books at home that I've read like ten times but they're the only books I've ever really read…"

"Don't think we do pop-up books in here _chica_" came Puck's voice. He had spun around in his chair and was watching them from behind Mr. Henderson.

"Shut it Puckerman, like you can read" Santana snarled, already aiming one of her pens.

"Please…enough" said the teacher holding his hands out.

"Wellll…" began Brittany slowly scratching her chin in thought. "I've read stuff like Harry Potter and Peter Pan and Alice In Wonderland. Those are all my favorites, but sometimes I read different books, ones that don't have a story but like teach you things, you know?"

"Oh?" came their teachers voice sounding slightly surprised. "Like what?"

Brittany looked around; Santana, Mr. Henderson, Finn and Puck were all watching her with interest. She cleared her throat.

"Well…right now I'm reading Stephen Hawking's 'A Brief History Of Time'. I like stuff that interests me, rainbows…unicorns…time travel…" she trailed and looked at her teachers slightly bemused expression.

"Isn't Stephen Hawking a little…uh…advanced? Even for the best of us" he said grimly.

"Not really, I understand it perfectly…" she said shrugging. "There's a lot of common misconceptions about time travel, like uhm, did you know that time is really just distance? So when people say 'time travels impossible' it's technically incorrect. Time travel is physically possible, although only in space-time and since we're on earth with gravity and everything well…it wouldn't work…well uhm technically it _could_. In my opinion it's theoretically possible to time travel here on earth but when people think of time travel they like think of going in a big machine and going backwards to dinosaurs or something. Which is kinda silly, cause in reality scientists would need to create a wormhole and somehow manage to safely travel through it – but even then, we wouldn't go forwards or backwards in time…more like…just…_through…_" Brittany trailed once she realized she was rambling. All four of them were looking at her like she just told them she was from a different planet. Which is kind of weird Brittany thought, since she never even brought aliens up.

"OK…" said Mr. Henderson awkwardly clapping his hands together. "Well this book has none of those things in it, but I hope you like it all the same" he said and turned around walking toward the front. "Now class! I want you to write out these notes!"

Finn had already turned around. Puck gave her a weird look and turned back around saying nothing.

Santana shifted her stool to the center.

"Get over here" she said motioning with her head.

"Huh? But we don't have to share…"

"I know" Santana smirked at her.

"Oh…OK" Brittany said shyly back and dragged her stool closer to Santana's.

"C'mon then _Blondie_, you can help me with this boring ass book" Santana sighed as she began flipping through it.

Brittany smiled. Santana may be a book, but she was beginning to find that the more she read, the better she understood. She only hoped that the book was never ending, as she didn't want to think about what would happen once she got to the last chapter, if there even was one.

Later on after school Brittany had stopped by her house and grabbed her things to stay over at Santana's with, including a fresh cheerios outfit for tomorrow. She fed Lord Tubbington, told her mom she was staying at a friend's house and was out the door before her mom could inquire further. Brittany and Santana spent the night watching movies, drinking a glass of whiskey then proceeding to use the Jack Daniels bottle to play spin the bottle; to which ironically never landed on either of them, so a good half hour was spent of them kissing random objects and laughing hysterically. They both got ready and went to bed, it was almost midnight and they had school the next day. Santana slipped into one side of the bed and turned away from her, Brittany was on the opposite end. She sighed, somewhat sad that this wasn't like the last time they were in bed together.

"Crap" Brittany said suddenly into the darkness.

"What's wrong?" Santana groaned.

"I forgot to bring my dad's hat, what if I don't sleep?" Brittany panicked slightly.

"Relax Britt-Britt, it's psychological…I'm sure you'll be fine, just don't think about anything" Santana said then yawned.

"Yeah…" Brittany said uncertainly. She felt her eyelids get heavy and heavier, maybe she could sleep, Santana was here after all. With that comforting thought she slipped into sleep.

Brittany suddenly felt a force behind her, as if a momentum was coming from inside her own body jolting her upwards. She did jolt upwards, sitting upright on the bed. She felt panicked and confused. She blinked and blinked but was blinded, it was pitch black, save for a few odd shapes floating around in the darkness. Where was she? She panicked. She blinked again and began to make objects out – a dresser, a window…Santana's room. She was breathing hard as if she just ran a marathon, she could hear her heart hammering. What was happening? Quickly aware of her own body, a sudden cold chill spread along her arms and down her back. She was covered in cold sweat. Crap. She reached a hand to the back of her neck and wiped the slimy substance away, she then used the back of her hand to palm her forehead, which was splayed with beads of sweat. Cold sweat. She shuddered, she didn't feel so good. She was so tired though, she just wanted to go back to sleep.

She shifted her legs and thankfully felt warm again. Her eyes went wide. Warm? The sweat on her legs felt warm. She pulled back the covers. Oh no. Crap. No. Her thighs were sweating but it wasn't the source of the warm feeling. She looked down to a rather large wet patch in-between her legs on the sheets. It had happened. She had wet herself. No. No. No. What would she do? She was so exhausted, she was tempted to just lie back and leave it till the morning, but this was Santana's bed. She panicked. She felt so embarrassed and ashamed, what would she tell Santana? She felt like crying but didn't even have the energy to, she just wanted to go back to sleep, for despite everything she didn't even feel fully awake.

"Britt?" croaked Santana's worried voice as a figure sat up on the bed beside her. Santana must've sensed her inner turmoil.

"I…" Brittany began but then a sob escaped from nowhere. She honestly didn't have the energy to cry. "I'm so sorry Santana…I'll clean it…"

"Oh…" Santana said her voice laced with realization as she looked down to Brittany's legs. "Hey, look it's OK" she said softly as she placed a hand on her back. She felt Santana quickly retreat her hand away. Brittany knew why, her top was probably soaked with sweat at the back.

"Jesus Britt you're soaking…" Santana said sounding panicked and shocked.

Brittany lulled her head lazily to the side and looked to Santana who she could barely make out in the dark. "I just need sleep…" she mumbled.

She felt warm tingles engulf her forehead as Santana placed a hand over it, probably checking her temperature.

"C'mere…" Santana said as she got out of the bed and walked round to her side. "You need to get up"

"No…" Brittany almost whimpered. She hardly felt conscious and was pretty sure her limbs were too asleep to move. Her head felt heavy; she just needed sleep. She closed her eyes.

"Hey…" Santana whispered quickly, and reached out to cup Brittany's cheek in her hand, Brittany instinctively leaned into the touch and slowly opened her eyes again. "Stay with me, you can't sleep here, just come with me and I'll get you cleaned up, two minutes I swear, then you can go back to sleep, OK?" she coaxed.

Brittany sobbed again but with hardly any tears dropping. She nodded meekly.

"OK…" Santana said gently taking her hand and leading her out of bed.

Brittany stood up but her legs felt shaky, probably sensing her imbalance Santana put an arm around her waist and led her into the hall. She wondered where Santana was taking her, but her answer was soon revealed to her when Santana flicked the bathroom light on. Santana put the toilet seat down.

"Sit there for a second, I'll be right back, I just need to go get some things, OK?" she said, giving Brittany a worried look.

Brittany nodded slowly only half-hearing what she said in the first place. She began to shiver; she was so cold and tired. She just wanted to go to bed. Santana gave her a last look of concern then left the bathroom. Brittany shifted her thighs, suddenly aware of how wet her shorts and underwear were as they were sticking to her skin uncomfortably. She felt another sob escape the back of her throat. Crap. She was so embarrassed; Santana must think she's disgusting.

Santana returned a moment later with fresh clothes, underwear and a towel in hand. Brittany frowned.

"W-what is…are…" she mumbled, god she was so tired she could hardly speak. Maybe she still was asleep and this was just part of her nightmare.

"You're taking a quick shower…I'll do it, you just need to stand there, and I won't get your hair wet…here" she said running a hand attentively through her blonde hair and scraping it up into a bobble.

"You…you must think I'm gross" Brittany said quietly.

"Sshh" Santana cooed. "No I don't, you just need a quick shower then we can go back to bed, OK?"

"But San please…I'm so tired, you should have just left me" Brittany said mildly as she looked up into brown eyes. They looked strained and Santana had lines under her eyes, she looked tired, still beautiful though Brittany thought. She suddenly felt guilty for disrupting her sleep. "I'm so sorry…" Brittany began to sob slightly again. "You shouldn't have to deal with this, it's gross…this isn't even your problem…please don't be mad at me…"

Santana said nothing as she placed both hands on Brittany shoulders and stood her up, she then began gently taking off her tank top, shorts, underwear and bra. She was glad to be rid of the sticky clothes. It had happened so fast that Brittany didn't even have time to react, to feel self-conscious, then again she probably didn't have the mental alertness right now to feel remotely self-conscious. Besides, her being naked, it's nothing Santana hasn't seen before. She shivered. So cold, yet she was sweating.

"Come over here" Santana whispered as she placed a hand on her lower back and brought her to the triangle-shaped bath that doubled up as a shower in the corner of the room. "Just kneel down in the bath, I'll do the rest. Oh and FYI? I'm not mad at you, I will be mad at you if you say you're sorry one more time though, so zip it" Santana said lightly.

"Right…" Brittany said shakily as she stepped one leg over at a time into the tub. She kneeled down so her head came level to Santana's stomach. The other girl leaned behind her and grabbed the showerhead and turned the power on. Brittany jolted feeling instantly warm water hit her back; it was a nice feeling against her goosebumps.

Santana grabbed soap and a sponge and began lathering it up and washing Brittany's body attentively. Brittany just kneeled there staring up into brown eyes, amazed at the level of concentration and care in Santana's face.

"Thank you" Brittany blurted out, not being able to tear away from Santana's tired but stunning brown orbs.

Santana paused and just smiled at her a little. She then resumed massaging Brittany's shoulder with the sponge and running the showerhead over it to rinse away the soap. She did the same to her stomach, breasts, behind her neck and her thighs, Brittany just sat there contently, watching her every move – every crease of her brow, blink of her eyes, bite of her lip, twitch of her face.

"Oh" Brittany said quickly as the sponge was cupped under in-between her legs.

"Sorry" Santana said quickly her eyes wide. "Did you want to…?"

"No…" Brittany sighed. "It's OK"

"OK…" Santana repeated and began to rub the sponge in circular motions.

Brittany tensed up but oddly enough this didn't feel sexual whatsoever even though her heart was beating wildly, or maybe it was sexual and Brittany was just too exhausted to notice. She had hoped the water would wake her up a bit, but the warmness of it coupled with Santana's delicate washing of her just made her feel more relaxed and tired. Santana cleaned then rinsed her, and switched the shower off.

"Up" she said gently, offering her hand.

Brittany took it and stepped out of the tub. Santana grabbed the towel and even dried every inch of her body carefully; Brittany just stood there and watched her in awe. Why was she being so calm about this? Like she had done this a million times before? Like looking out for her was second-nature.

Santana kneeled down to the floor and held her underwear and sweatpants out for her to step into.

"Right leg…" she said.

Brittany moved a leg.

"No…other one" Santana said patting the side of her other leg.

"Oh…" Brittany mumbled, too tired to even feel embarrassed about her mistake.

She stepped into them and Santana pulled them up, she then threw a t-shirt over her head and tugged it down.

"That's you" she smiled. "We can go back to bed now" she said as she grabbed Brittany's hand and led her out the bathroom. Brittany glanced back to the pile of wet clothes on the floor.

"What about my clothes…and…your bed?" she asked, feeling ashamed and guilty.

"Don't sweat it, I'll sort them in the morning" she said as she squeezed her hand a little tighter, moving further down the dark hallway.

"Where are we going?" asked Brittany, not sure wither she'd be able to stay awake for much longer.

"We can sleep in my mom's bed" Santana said softly as they entered another room with a king-size bed in it.

Brittany was so tired she didn't; even bother to take in her surroundings as she collapsed toward the bed and pulled the covers up over her. She didn't even ask what side Santana would prefer. She felt Santana come in on the other side of the bed and rolled back onto her back when she sensed the other girl was edging closer to her.

"You good?" Santana asked.

"Yeah…" Brittany breathed as she turned around onto her side and was practically face-to-face with Santana.

"You should get some sleep" Santana whispered as she reached out a hand and began delicately tracing tingly patterns over the contour of Brittany's face. The blonde smiled contently feeling her eyelids get heavy. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel the smooth tracing of Santana's thumb over her forehead, down her jawline and across her chin. She then ran it over her cheekbones then under her eyes then down to the tip of her nose. Brittany was so entranced she was entering in and out of sleep. The last thing she remembered feeling was a very fleeting, soft touch upon her lips. It could have been Santana's thumb smoothing over her lips, but it felt too soft and plump. Maybe she was already dreaming.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: hey guys, believe it or not before I started this fic I had a beginning, middle and end in mind - but I wasn't expecting to be writing at this pace so, and there's still so much to happen (at this rate it will be 50 chapters lol) , let me know if the pace is dragging too much. Enjoy! :)**

"Hey Britt, wake up" came a whisper from a gravely voice.

Brittany opened her eyes quickly and blinked several times, flinching slightly at the brightness of the room, she raised her hand to shield her eyes. Her vision came into focus as she looked up to see Santana sitting on the bed by her wayside, looking down at her with a small smile on her face. Santana looked really tired, her eyes looking a little shrunken. Brittany blinked once more as events from last night came flooding back into her brain. She suddenly felt sick with embarrassment.

"Santana…" she croaked, her voice hoarse. "I'm so, so, so sorry about last night-"

"Shut up" Santana said simply. It was more of a request than an order.

"I, uh, what?" said Brittany tussling her hair at the back and sitting up coming face to face with Santana. Santana shuffled away from her, threw her legs over and sat at the edge of the bed, her back to the blonde.

"I said shut up…and by that I mean with your apologies," sighed Santana casually, almost as if she were discussing the weather.

"I uh…but I am sorry, your bed…waking you up…plus you look like you didn't get much sleep"

Santana turned around slightly to face her.

"Why apologize for something you have no control over?" she said, as a lopsided grin spread across her features.

"OK, I suppose" Brittany breathed, feeling a little more at ease. "What time is it?" she asked looking around.

"Seven, I wasn't sure what your morning routine was before school so I just woke you up now" said Santana pinching and fiddling with the mattress sheet at the edge of the bed. "I…uh…really liked having you over" she said almost shyly as she looked up through her lashes back at Brittany.

"Even though I totally wet your bed and cost you your _much needed_ beauty sleep?" Brittany smirked, tilting her head in curiosity.

Santana shrugged. "It was just nice not to wake up to an empty house for a change," she mumbled; now prodding randomly at the bed covers.

"Oh…" said Brittany following her hand movements. "Well I would totally give you Lord Tubbington for company but then I'd miss him too…mhmm…" Brittany trailed tapping her bottom lip in thought, wondering whither a cat even counted as human company. She talked to Lord Tubbington all the time though so she didn't see how it was much different than talking to people. Except maybe the whole talking back part.

"Hold up…" Santana said turning around, bringing her legs back on the bed and crossing them. She had a frown but an amused smirk on her face. "Lord Tubbington? What the hell is that? Look…I can handle your cute weird, but if you're some sort of religious zealot or part of some weird ass cult where a 'Lord Tubbington' is your savior? Then you and I needs to have serious talks…"

"No…wait what?" Brittany scrunched her face up. She was momentarily sidetracked by Santana's 'cute weird' comment. "No, silly" she said shaking her head and laughing a little, she leaned forward and nudged Santana's chin with her thumb playfully. "Lord Tubbington's my cat"

"I see" Santana comprehended, her eyes narrowed at the blonde. "You called your cat Lord Tubbington?"

"Yup" said Brittany making a popping sound with her lips. "What's so funny?" she asked, a grin plying her lips. Santana had a fist covering her mouth and was failing miserably to stifle a laugh.

Santana chuckled a little and let her eyes fall to a spot on the bed. "That's just…so…_you_" she sighed fondly, her eyes slowly looking up to lock with blue. Her eyes were dark yet bright and smiling at the edges, they were traced with tiredness though.

Brittany smiled shyly, chewing her bottom lip. She shrugged not knowing what to say. "Today, Thursday, is my favorite day, you wanna know why?" Brittany asked coyly, walking her hand over the covers toward Santana's that was placed there; long given up on fidgeting. Santana watched her hand curiously and gave her an interested look. "Becausssse…" Brittany started slowly then grabbing Santana's pinky with her own. "It's the day I get to most see you"

Santana sighed as she let go of her pinky and stood up from the bed. "That's uh…I…that's nice of you to say I guess," she said, scratching her cheek and adverting her gaze to instead look around the room.

Brittany smiled at her amused. "You're not so good with compliments are you?" she said, giggling a little.

Santana scowled at her for a second. "Well uh…no. I suppose I'm just not used to getting many," she said. Brittany raised her eyebrows a little. "You know, beyond the '_you so hot and stuff_' and '_nice boobs_'" she added smirking.

"Mhmm," Brittany nodded still smiling, trying her hardest not to suddenly look at said boobs. "Wait, girls say that to you?"

"Boys," Santana clarified shaking her head. "Whole freakin' school knows I'm a lesbian yet, that doesn't stop em' from trying" she sighed rolling her eyes.

Brittany laughed a little. "Well that must be annoying and kinda insulting, on the other hand," she mused aloud and found her eyes flickering between Santana's and her lips. "If _I_ were a guy, then…"

Brittany left that thought hanging in the air as they both fell into a brief silence, the blonde smirking playfully as Santana's features formed the ghost of a smile.

"I need to apologize to you," Santana said suddenly, coming to sit back down on the edge of the bed and clearing her throat. Brittany was about to interject but Santana raised her hand to silence her. "No, just let me finish OK?" she asked, not unkindly. Brittany nodded blankly not having a clue what this was about. "Last night…you looked so tired and ill almost I…I…didn't realize your sleep problems were that bad. I guess what I'm trying to say is…is that if I had known? Then I uh…I would have never have written that stuff down in Spanish" she spoke down to her lap.

"Santana," Brittany began softly. "You already apologized and I've forgotten about it, seriously, I forgive you but-"

"That doesn't make it OK" Santana said quickly. "I'm just sorry alright? When I meet people I tend to…" she trailed and looked in thought. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, I like pushing peoples buttons and gauging their reactions, it's just what I do and I'll keep on doing it, but I'm just sorry I pushed yours so hard…I shouldn't have pushed yours at all to be honest…" she finished, yet again twiddling with her fingers. She looked up to meet Brittany's gaze.

Brittany shifted closer to her ever so slightly on the bed. "Why do you like to push people's buttons?" she asked quietly, her eyes scanning deep brown for any sort of indication.

Santana gave a hollow laugh. "I figure," she began, raising both hands and shrugging in a defeated manor. "I figure if I annoy people enough, if I push their buttons enough, then they'll leave me alone. That way…the ones who do stick around, and actually get to know me, are the only friends worth having" she said. Santana clasped her hands together and bit her bottom lip as it formed into a wry smile. "However as you have probably guessed, not many people put up with Auntie Tana's bullshit," she smirked a little, but it faded quickly. "I don't have many friends…" she added quietly.

Brittany felt her heart swell a little. "I'm still around" Brittany offered, a small smile spreading across thin lips.

"Yeah," Santana said sounding deep in thought. "You are, aren't you?" she smiled and the dimples on her cheek once again became visible. Brittany had the urge to pinch them but stilled her hands.

"Anyway, we should get ready for school, if I play hookey again my ma will get suspicious and yell at me down the phone for an hour" Santana said smiling warmly.

"Does she keep tabs on you or something while she's away working?" Brittany asked, noticing how Santana's face lit up whenever she spoke of her mother.

"Oh yeah" Santana said nodding firmly. "My school attendance, credit card bills…you name it," she said as her smile faded and she got up and stretched at the side of the bed. "Anyway, your stuff is in my room, just don't touch the mattress it's still drying out, I put a bunch of cleaning stuff on it. Oh and I washed your clothes so they should be dry by the time school finishes, you'll be coming over for your Spanish lesson, right?" Santana asked, the tiniest fraction of uncertainty in her voice.

"Of course," Brittany smiled.

"OK, good…cool" Santana said, sounding a little relieved. She headed toward the door to leave, but Brittany called out to her.

"Hey uhm, Santana?"

"Yeah?" Santana asked turning around at the threshold.

"Thanks…for…" Brittany said, not knowing how to articulate her feelings.

"Everything?" Santana offered, a slight smirk on her face.

Brittany laughed a little and looked down bashfully. "Yeah…everything," she said. She then remembered something from last night. "Last night, did you kiss me?" she asked, bringing her own fingertips to her lips.

"Nope," Santana pouted. "You must have been dreaming" she smirked, folding her arms. Brittany narrowed her eyes, shooting her a cynical look. Santana merely shrugged and exited the room, not before locking eyes with Brittany, a glint in her eye.

"Liar" Brittany called out to the hallway. She heard Santana laugh her way down the stairs.

Santana had driven them to school in her mom's super cool car, she parked the car and both started heading toward the main entrance. It was another gloriously sunny day. Santana linked pinkies with hers and swung their hands casually; Brittany felt a smile twitch the corners of her mouth at how natural it all felt. She walked with an extra bounce in her step this morning. The horror and anxiety of last night seeming like a lifetime ago.

"Ah, Santana Lopez, may I hit you up for an interview?" came a squeaky voice.

As students were bustling around them outside the front, two boys suddenly appeared out of nowhere from behind a nearby tree; one fat boy holding a camera on his shoulders pointing at them, and the other thrusting a microphone at Santana. Brittany recognize the boy as Jacob Ben Israel – a skinny, Jewish boy with a large, out of control Afro who was often seen pestering students and faculty members for interviews either for his online blog or the school newspaper.

"Well _hello there _Brittany, don't you look-" began Jacob as he outstretched his hand toward Brittany.

"Nah ah, you don't touch her, we clear?" Santana said, grabbing the boy's wrist before it got to its destination. "Otherwise am gon' spend countless nights researching a spell that'll bring Adolf Hitler back to life, then allow him to finish what he started, you feel what I mean _Jew-fro_?"

The boy pushed his large spectacles up the bridge of his sweaty nose and nodded quickly. He looked terrified.

"Good," Santana smiled. "C'mon Britt-Britt" she tugged her pinky and they both began walking away from him. Jacob still held the mic out at them and began walking along side them.

"Santana, is it true that you're joining the biggest losers club in school, aka. The Glee club?"

Santana sighed loudly and cocked her head to the side sassily. "For once Israel your sources aren't feeding you bullshit"

"I'm joining too!" Brittany said brightly. "I like to dance"

"I see…Santana, how do you think this will affect your bad-ass reputation, considering that until this day students still believe that your stint in juvy before the summer was because you set fire to and burned a new born puppy alive?" he asked, now walking backwards in front of them as they were nearing the entrance.

Santana snorted. "No comment" she smiled sweetly.

"Finally, what do you say to the whispers around school that your sudden new BFF cheerio here, is actually a victim of your mind control and that you've made her your 'bitch'?"

Brittany's eyes bulged as Santana brought them to a halt. People around school talked about them? She had no idea. She suddenly felt weird, not knowing what to say. She looked to the side at Santana though, who had a large smirk on her face.

"Mhmm, what do you say Britt-Britt?" Santana smirked at her, shaking her pinky with her own slightly. "Am I controlling your mind? Are you my bitch?" she breathed the last word.

Brittany gulped at the way she drawled out the last word, it sounded incredibly sexy, Brittany was tempted to say yes just by that alone. Brittany knew though by the glint in the Latina's eye that she was giving her silent permission to toy with him, to say whatever she wanted. She smiled knowingly at her, wondering exactly when this ability to communicate without speaking started.

Brittany cleared her throat. "Well uhm," she began chewing her bottom lip. She refocused her eyes from the mic and looked directly into the camera. "I think I should totally start by reciting the great words of Bill Clinton and say that _I did not have sexual relations with that women,_" Brittany deadpanned, she heard Santana chuckle beside her. "Oh and as for being Santana's bitch?" she started, leaning further down into the mic and looking up at the camera. "I think what's really important here is that you need to realize that uhm, _everyone _is Santana's bitch annndd…that…you should respect her fierceness. Is that OK? Yeah so…we'll be taking no further questions at this time" she deadpanned as Santana dragged her away by the pinky, laughing hysterically.

They both reached the entrance and pushed opened the doors simultaneously. When Santana's chuckling subsided, Brittany leaned into her.

"Was that OK?" Brittany asked, reveling in the way she had made Santana laugh so much.

Santana sighed in satisfaction and leaned into her. "That was perfect," she whispered into her ear, amusement laced in her tone. Brittany looked down at her feet to hide her flushed face. "C'mon I'll walk you to your first class"

"Santana, your class is practically on the other side of the school, besides Quinn usually walks with me," Brittany said as they approached their lockers.

"Well I don't see your best buddy here waiting for you, do you?" she snarked as she put things into her bag, the clinking of glass bottles once again ringing out. Brittany decided that for now it was best to yet again bite her tongue on that matter.

"You're right" Brittany said vaguely, standing up on her tiptoes and looking around a sea of students for Quinn. She was normally here. "Where is she?" she mused aloud.

"Whatever," Santana said uninterested, shutting over her locker and holding her pinky back out. "You get to spend a few more minutes in my awesome company and I get to be a few minutes late for class, it's a win-win"

Taking once last glance around for Quinn, Brittany resigned. "Yeah OK…" she said grabbing the other girl's pinky.

"Try not worry too much about your dad today" Santana said quietly.

"Thanks, yeah I know…" Brittany said, grateful that Santana had said not to worry too much rather than not to worry at all, for that was impossible. It's like she understood.

"Can't believe people are saying you're my bitch, that's a new one," Santana said humorously as they began walking to class. "Could have been worse though, people could have thought we were going out or something…ha…" Santana laughed a little and shook her head.

Brittany stopped in her tracks, Santana coming to a halt slightly in front of her. She felt like she had an epiphany. Hadn't it been obvious? Why hadn't she realized before? _Going out _with Santana – is exactly what she wanted. She briefly thought how wonderful it would be to call Santana hers, to walk hand in hand, to know everything about her, to kiss her whenever she wanted…

"I…" Santana began, a timid look in her eyes. The Latina looked down to their interlinked pinkies and slowly back up at Brittany's now pale face. She must've known exactly what she was thinking. "On second thoughts I uh…I'm going to head to class, see you later, yeah?" she said quickly, letting go and beginning to walk away.

"Santana wait-"

She had already turned the corner and was gone.

Brittany gulped and loosened the collar of her cheer outfit, suddenly feeling clammy. How had she been so stupid not to realize before? She felt so silly; it was obvious from the start. Santana wasn't just a crush or an itch. Itches were annoying, temporary things that after being scratched went away and were forgotten about – Santana was more permanent than that. Brittany's heart sank a little in realization; what she wanted the most, was exactly what it seemed Santana wanted the least. Fate's kind of cruel, Brittany thought.

Spanish sort of dragged in, Santana and Brittany had decided to pull their chairs into the middle so they were sitting side by side, even though they were only supposed to do that in English. Brittany didn't question it though, maybe it would just be one of those things that they both did. They hadn't said much all lesson, partly due to Mr. Shue but Santana was oddly quiet after what happened in the hallway.

"Now guys when you're done answering your questions, bring your paper down to the front and I'll mark them" said Mr. Shue clapping his hands together. "Now, get to it"

As soon as Mr. Shue sat down in his chair Rachel whipped around on her chair.

"Hey guys listen" Rachel hissed at them and sighed rather dramatically. "There appears to be a problem, and by problem I mean…Mr. Shue"

"Other than the fact that the guys hair looks like a trolls pubic area, I ain't seeing the problem" shrugged Santana.

Brittany snorted as Rachel opened her mouth a little. "Uh," Rachel began, her eyelids blinking furiously. "That's not _exactly _what I was talking about Santana," she sighed exasperatedly and shot Brittany a '_do you see what I have to put up with?' _look. Brittany grinned. "What I mean is," she continued, tossing her head back to the front for a second and turning back round. "Mr. Shue said, since there's only two weeks to sectionals, that it would be a bad idea to shoehorn you guys into the club last-minute, he said that would be unfair on both of you and possibly ruin our chances at sectionals"

"Mmrph" huffed Santana. "That guy's always had it in for me"

"Most teachers do Santana, besides that's not it, it's nothing personal" Rachel reassured them.

"OK, I guess I understand that" Brittany said.

"You guys are still joining glee club, it's just that…well…it won't be official till after sectionals, but I still think you guys should come along to the choir room everyday and _mingle_, glee club is after all one big happy family!_"_

"Oh, puh-lease" Santana said rolling her eyes.

"Well you have no choice, I've already organized for the Glee club to go out tomorrow night, we're all going bowling, just a little get together so you can meet everyone" said Rachel.

"Bowling? Cool, I haven't been bowling since I was a kid" Brittany said nostalgically.

"Lame" said Santana shortly.

"Oh and also, you two will still need to informally audition for glee club, so Brittany, I imagine your voice is an average Mezzo-soprano, again likely with average range, my voice is _of course _flawless Soprano" said Rachel matter-of-factly, nodding her head.

Brittany blinked at her, not knowing wither that was an insult or a compliment.

"And since Santana here," Rachel continued, gesturing her hand toward Santana. "Has that marvellous low alto, raspy voice, I figure it would be perfect if you just combined your auditions and did a duet instead, since your voice types naturally go," she said enthusiastically. "A duet?" Santana repeated uncertainly, shifting her eyes between Brittany and Rachel. "

Yeah I dunno Rachel," Brittany began. "Cant Santana just stand there and sing and I'll uhm, dance around her or something?"

"I suppose" Rachel sighed rolling her eyes and turning back around.

"Free period next," Brittany stated. Santana looked to the side at her. "Wanna hang out under the bleachers?" the blonde asked.

Santana clicked her pen a few times before answering. "Sure"

Brittany smiled, glad that Santana had seemed to have forgotten about the awkwardness of earlier. Brittany leaned down into her bag and grabbed her phone from one of the pockets; she had been checking it at intervals all day. Her heart stopped when she seen she had received a text message from her mom ten minutes ago.

_Good news! Your dad just landed in DC, he'll be home in a few hours. Mom_

"Santana!" Brittany squealed jumping up on her seat, clutching her mobile tightly. She read it then reread it to make sure it was real. It was real right?

"Quiet Brittany" Mr Shue called from the front, looking up at her briefly. Brittany looked around for a split second, a few people staring at her. She mouthed 'sorry' noiselessly.

"What is it?" Santana whispered, frowning. Brittany was too ecstatic for words so she just shoved her mobile phone in front of Santana, Brittany was practically bouncing on her seat. She watched as Santana frowned at the screen, then slowly her features turned into a grin.

"See?" she said grinning brightly at Brittany and nudging her elbow into hers. "Told you not to worry"

Brittany just sighed loudly, smiling like an idiot. She felt like she just had the weight of the world lifted from her shoulders. "Thank you" Brittany said quietly. Before Santana could say anything the bell went and students were already packing up and leaving. "C'mon, free period!" Brittany said excitedly, grabbing Santana's pinkie and for once dragging her along aimlessly behind her, out of the classroom.

Brittany felt really giddy as they made their way over the football field toward the far end bleachers. It felt so wonderful to be this carefree. The sun was lovely today. Santana was walking casually as Brittany spun around her doing twirls then broke into the moonwalk, grinning back at Santana as she slid over the grass with ease.

"Impressive" smiled Santana, rolling her eyes slightly.

"That's nothing, you haven't seen me properly move" Brittany said, a hint of flirtatiousness about her voice.

"Oh really?" Santana said back just as playfully, raising an eyebrow. They reached the bleachers and Brittany stopped moonwalking.

"Yeah, really" the blonde said as she ran at Santana, quickly wrapped her arms around her waist and lifted her up off the ground entirely. Santana seemed to instinctively wrap her legs around Brittany's waist. Santana squirmed around trying to break free.

"What the hell are you doing?" she asked, her annoyance turning into laughter as Brittany turned the corner and entered the area underneath the bleachers. Santana pushed rather hard against her shoulders but Brittany clasped her hands tighter and was simply grinning at her squirming around helplessly. "Seriously Blondie, if you don't let me go I'll go all Lima Heights on your ass" she said punching Brittany's shoulder lightly.

"Why do you wanna let go? Isn't this fun?" asked Brittany as she began spinning them around in slow circles. She stopped and walked over to the brown sofa. Santana wrapped her arms around her neck and merely scowled at her with an adorable pout. Brittany threw her head back, as she laughed loud at the vision before her. Santana probably thought she was giving her a death stare but it instead looked like a scowl a grounded 5-year-old would wear. "You're so cute" sighed Brittany, her giggles settling. She threw Santana rather ungracefully onto the sofa but Santana with her arms still around her neck ended up brining Brittany down on top of her. "Whoops…sorry" Brittany said, feeling the blood run to her cheeks. They both looked down at Brittany's hips now fully on top of Santana's, their breasts pushed against each others. Brittany put a hand on either side of Santana's head and pushed herself upward, but was halted when Santana grabbed onto her arm.

"You're quite strong aren't you?" Santana smirked, gently tracing her middle fingertip up and down the outer edge of Brittany's bicep. So very tingly.

"Yeah well…I…uhm…dance…and…cheerios…and stuff" Brittany muttered, blue eyes darting from Santana's brown to her luscious lips and then to her neck and collarbone. Brittany gulped and forced herself to look back into those enigmatic eyes.

"Ahem" came a voice suddenly, clearing their throat. Brittany sprang up so fast and whipped around to see Rachel standing there, arms crossed, eyebrows shot so far up. "Sorry ladies, I didn't mean to interrupt-"

"You didn't interrupt _anything_" Santana said quickly sitting up and dusting herself off, giving Brittany a pointed look then looking back to Rachel. "So calm your berries, Rachel. What did you want anyways?"

"Well I saw you two head over here and I wanted to run through a few song selections for your audition, nothing final, just a few ideas…" said Rachel walking briskly toward them and handing Santana a small notepad.

"_A few?" _said Santana sarcastically as she flipped through page after page of hand-written suggestions. Brittany scooted closer to Santana on the sofa and stared blankly at the amount of thought Rachel put into this, when she herself hadn't thought about it much, if at all.

"Yes a few," she said, completely oblivious to Santana's sarcasm. "Anyway that's all I came over for, I'll let you two get back to…it" she said as she grinned looking between them and departed.

"Boy, Rachel sure is dedicated" Brittany said giving a low whistle.

"Crazy more like" Santana countered.

Brittany stretched and yawned. "Gosh, I'm like so relieved I feel like I suddenly want to catch up on all the sleep I missed" she said as she kicked her legs up on the sofa and lay her head down on Santana's lap, much like Santana did hers in the taxi last Friday. She was really comfy but shut her eyes hesitantly, expecting Santana to tell her to get up any second. Except she didn't, nothing but silence with the distant laughter and chatter from the football field filled the warm summer air.

"I'll wake you up when the lunch bell goes" Santana said quietly.

Brittany was about to say thanks but her tiredness completely took over, she soon just found her self nodding vaguely, licking her lips and closing her eyes falling quickly into sleep.

When Brittany got home later on, she quickly found herself scurrying toward the living room, when she did her knee's almost gave way as another wave of relief washed over her. Her dad was standing in the middle of the living room arm's open, a cheesy grin on his face. "Dad!" Brittany sighed as she ran at him, running into him with a hug. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up off the ground for a second; he put her down and forced her back to get a proper look at her.

"All right kiddo, don't hug me to death" he said, and gave a loud bellowing laugh. Brittany grinned. Her dad was a burly but slightly muscular man, his hair was light brown and styled in a short buzzcut. He also had a dented scar in the shape of a line on the right of his temple (a "war souvenir" he would call it, from getting hit my flying shrapnel when he was away at war). He would have been an intimidating looking man if it weren't for his kind eyes, his friendly loud laugh and his kind soul that somehow managed to shine through. Brittany was so glad he was back.

"I've missed you so much" she mumbled into his chest, already hugging him tightly once more.

"I know, I've missed you too sweetie" he said, patting her back.

"Where's mom?" she asked, pulling away. She watched her dad walk over to his chair and sit down, hands clasped behind his head.

"In the kitchen, making dinner," he smiled. "We've got much to catch up on, I know, but I'd rather not play twenty questions tonight kiddo, it was a long flight and I'm rather tired. Tomorrow night your mother and I are going to aunt Carol's but I promise…me and you will go fishing all weekend, just the two of us, what do you say?"

"Awesome, OK" Brittany nodded. Her and her dad normally went fishing to a local lake for a few days, Brittany was terrible at fishing but she honestly liked camping out and just spending time with her dad. There were good lakes back in Louisiana but she wasn't sure about here in Ohio. "It's probably for the best, my friend's coming over tonight, she gives me Spanish lessons, and tomorrow I'm going out to meet the glee club I joined so…"

"Ho!" exclaimed her dad grinning. "So you've made new friends, learning a new language and joined the glee club? Seems we do have quite a lot to catch up on girly"

"You have no idea," Brittany said smiling.

"Well like I said, we'll catch up at the weekend, after I have dinner I'm hitting the hay," he said yawning. "You've got school tomorrow so don't stay up too late"

Brittany strode forward, leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. "Guess I should say goodnight now then"

"Goodnight" he smiled.

Later on Brittany was lying in her bed and stroking under Lord Tubbington's chin who was huddled into a ball beside her. He purred contently. Her bedroom door suddenly opened and for a moment she thought her eyes were deceiving her as Santana slinked in, two bottles of coca cola in her hands, and a Spanish textbook stuffed under her arm. Brittany sat up so fast. "Who let you in?" she asked grinning at the sight of Santana in her room.

"Your mother," she said smirking. "Who by the way is _charming_" she added dryly as she shut the door by swinging her hip into it.

"Oh no…did she say something to you?" asked Brittany apprehensively. "She loves me and all but sometimes…well…she can be a bit uptight and she's kinda distant to be honest and for some reason she's real picky about who I hang out with."

"Chillax" Santana said throwing her a can of coke that she just managed to catch. "It was more what she didn't say than what she did"

"Oh…" Brittany said, not feeling any better about that slumped down at the end of the bed and opened her can. Her eyes suddenly bulged.

"Holy fucking Christ, that is the largest cat I've ever seen," she said staring at Lord Tubbington.

"Sshh!" Brittany hushed her, and put her hands over her cat's ears. "He's really sensitive about his weight Santana, that's mean, besides he's on Atkins now to try combat his diabetes" she whispered and removed her hands. Santana merely blinked between the blonde and the cat, maybe not knowing which one of them was crazier. Lord Tubbington suddenly slowly got up, prodded lazily over to Santana and lay down beside her.

"Hey there" Santana said smirking at the cat and began tickling behind one of it's ears. Brittany had never felt jealous of a cat before but she was beginning to now, but then she realized something.

"Oh my god" said Brittany astounded.

"What?" asked Santana, clearly confused.

"Nothing it's just…he…he normally hates new people" said Brittany, frowning at her cat in disbelief.

"I can make any pussy love me," Santana said lowly, smirking devilishly at Brittany.

Brittany giggled shaking her head then rolled her eyes, feeling slightly flushed. "Mine certainly does," Brittany said back, smirking. She cleared her throat quickly. "Lord Tubbington, he smokes a lot and he usually doesn't like people, although now that I'm thinking about it you and him have a lot in common…" she sighed thoughtfully. Santana scowled at her. "Sorry if my mom made you feel uncomfortable" Brittany said softly, sipping some soda. "She just…doesn't like me very much"

Santana tilted her head to the side and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What makes you say that?"

"Don't get me wrong," Brittany began, holding up a hand. "She loves me…it's just…she does it in her own way, but I don't think I turned out to be the daughter she like wanted or something," she shrugged. "I think she'd much prefer someone like Quinn as a daughter, and no offence to Quinn, but I'm not a whole lot like her. I think she wanted someone who spoke smart and dressed smart and was into religion and gardening or something, but instead she got me. Brittany. Who dresses weird, isn't all that smart, talks to her cat, reads weird books and watches porn a lot."

Santana threw her head back, clapped her hands once together and laughed "Ha!"

Brittany cocked her head to the side. "What's so funny?"

Santana looked across at her from the end of the bed and Brittany felt her tummy flip slightly at the adoration and admiration tingeing deep mocha colored eyes. "Promise me something Blondie," she said, suddenly looking serious. Brittany raised her eyebrows for her to elaborate. A small smirk spread Santana's thick lips. "Never change who you are for anyone, you hear me?" Brittany nodded eagerly at her. "Besides…" Santana continued and went back to tickling Lord Tubbington behind the ears. "You're a lot more interesting person than Quinn is, than most people are…" she muttered.

Brittany shot her a bashful smile that she hoped said all the thanks she couldn't articulate at the moment. They both fell into a short silence, stealing glances at each other then looking away. This was ridiculous, Brittany thought, they were capable of holding conversations – although the blonde came to realize that lately they could do that without speaking at all.

"So…" Santana said slowly, after a while. She stopped her petting, leaned back against the bedpost and spread her arms along it. "You watch porn a lot?" she smirked, and then chewed her large bottom lip. Her eyes looked a lot darker suddenly.

Brittany pursed her lips and nodded. Her heart was suddenly thudding really loud; she hoped Santana couldn't hear it.

"Mhmm," Santana hummed, looking at her nails briefly then back to Brittany. "What kind of porn do you watch?" she asked lowly.

"All of it" Brittany said simply shrugging.

"All of it?" Santana reiterated, tilting her head up slightly.

"All of it, I watch all kinds, everything's hot" she said, a toothy grin spreading across her face. "Boy girl, boy boy, girl girl" she mumbled shyly.

"Not many girls would even admit to watching porn…" Santana commented sounding intrigued.

"Santana," sighed Brittany uncrossing her legs and outstretched them so they were side-by-side by Santana's. "You forget, I'm not like most girls" she smiled.

"_That _you aren't" Santana smiled back.

"You know I'm pretty good at reading people, figuring them out, that includes even what they like in bed" Brittany said, smiling confidently.

"You think your Dr. Phil or some shit?" Santana said sarcastically. "Go on then, do me…" she sighed, sounding unimpressed.

"I'm serious Santana, people's personalities are linked to their relationships and…well…how they have sex, you probably won't like what I have to say about you" Brittany said knowingly.

"Divulge me" Santana said, crossing her arms over-sensitively.

"Wellll" Brittany began slowly. "You don't really seem to like authority figures, and since your dad abandoned you when you were young and your mom's away a lot, you're left to fend for yourself and you're probably like wary of other people too" she added nodding. Brittany paused for a moment; Santana's eyes were wide, but she merely blinked. "Anyways," she continued, still feeling her heart beat for some reason. "It means you have a lot of control in your life but…also…you probably don't have a whole lot of parental boundaries or any kind of boundaries, so you're kinda spoiled."

Santana scowled and looked at her sceptically.

"But that's not your fault or anything," Brittany added reassuringly, as she watched Lord Tubbington drop off the side of the bed. "I mean, it's not your fault you live alone most of the time-"

"What's this got to do with sex?" Santana interjected sounding slightly impatient.

"Well uhm," Brittany said as she began scooting down the bed closer to Santana, she stopped when she reached the girls waist. "You kind of have this bravado about you, like, when you flirt and stuff? Really though, it's just an act – you only do it because you like to be in control of situations, you uhm…like girls to submit to you…you do it with me all the time, the way you talk to me, when you whisper things in my ear" Brittany trailed feeling her heart hammer more loudly. Was it hot in here?

Santana uncrossed her arms and put them back across the bedpost. She looked down for a moment then locked eyes with Brittany's. "Go on…" she said quietly, sounding unwillingly interested.

"That's it really, well, it's kinda hard to explain without…" again she trailed and swallowed thickly. "Describing, for example, what _I'd _do to you, if we were," she said making a hand gesture between them. "You know" she mumbled uncertainly. She looked up to Santana who was looking at her through hooded lids; the Latina chewed her bottom lip again and cleared her throat.

"And what is it you'd do to me?" she asked lowly, her legs shifting ever so slightly.

"Well uh…" Brittany began, her voice trembling slightly. She gulped; her imagination was already running wild. She shook her head to regain focus. "You're strong and in control in most aspects of your life, but honestly? Behind closed doors…I think…you'd love to be controlled, to be dominated. Even though you wouldn't admit it."

"Pfft," exhaled Santana sceptically, rolling her eyes a little. She looked down and frowned more at her self for a second then looked back up through her lashes at Brittany. "Go on, tell me exactly how you would do that," she said huskily.

"Well for one I'd totally tie you up, tight enough so you couldn't move" she said, her voice lower than she intended.

"Then what?" Santana asked quickly. Brittany felt tingles in her lower stomach at how eager Santana sounded.

"I'd tie you up, maybe tease you for a long time, maybe hit you…really hard…" she said her voice wavering. She ran a thumb along the palm of her hand, it felt really clammy. Suddenly basic functions like swallowing and breathing felt difficult. She looked back up to Santana whose eyes were wide but curious, hungry for more. "I'd maybe blindfold you, not sure. Maybe even asphyxiate…"

Santana's mouth dropped open a little. Brittany noticed how heavily she was breathing by how high her chest was ascending and descending.

"I'd definitely gag you at first, cause you'd like complain a whole lot, but really, deep down you'd hate yourself…" she said and paused before finishing "at how much you were fucking loving it" Brittany breathed the last sentence. Santana's eyebrows rose, as did Brittany's, slightly surprised at herself. She swallowed thickly yet again and subconsciously licked her lips. "But anyways," she sighed. "This is just hypothetical, that's the right word isn't it?"

Santana never answered her. "You think you can top me? Is that what you're saying?" Santana asked, her tone defensive, lustful and yet somehow sounding like she was proposing a challenge too.

"Well yeah…you're probably not used to it but-"

"Oh yeah? How much you want to bet Blondie?" Santana said, the usual self-assured smirk back in place.

Brittany looked to the piggy bank on her dresser and laughed a little, knowing she had at least thirty dollars in there. "Thirty buck" she said sarcastically joking.

"Deal" said Santana quickly.

"Huh?" Brittany asked confused.

"You. Me. After bowling, tomorrow night. My place. We'll see who tops who" she said seriously, as if Brittany had somehow offended her honor by suggesting otherwise.

"I uh…what?" Brittany stuttered. She knew they had done stuff before, well Santana had done stuff to her, but they never spoke about it – now suddenly not only was Santana talking out loud about it, but even consenting to it. Brittany's heart started beating hard again. She didn't understand.

"It doesn't mean anything, it's just a game…a bet. C'mon, you honestly think you can top me? The girl who was lying pathetically on the bench in the shower room? The girl who's never even had sex with another girl? Puh-lease, it'll be the easiest 60 buck I'll make in my life, it'll be over in five minutes…tops," she said smugly shrugging. Brittany frowned and was now determined to prove her wrong. She felt a smile twitch the corner of her lips.

"We'll see Santana" she said airily.

"Yeah, we will" Santana said back flatly.

Brittany raised her hand in the air.

"Uh Britts?" she said ogling the blonde. "We aren't in class, you don't have to raise your hand to ask me a question," she said blankly.

"Oh yeah I know but…I was just wondering when Spanish is going to start?" she asked, grinning.

"Oh yeah, right" Santana said rolling her eyes, picking up and flipping through the textbook. "I was thinking we should do colors this week…got distracted," she mumbled, still flipping through pages.

"Happens to the best of us" Brittany teased. Santana just looked up briefly and shook her head at her. "I'm ready, hit me with your best Spanish…miss" she added playfully.

"We'll see Blondie, we'll see," sighed Santana, not rising at all to Brittany's bait.

Brittany smiled. Tomorrow was going to be interesting, for several reasons. Her dad was back safe and sound, she was going to meet a bunch of new friends in glee club and her and Santana were going to be…alone. She suddenly realized she couldn't remember the last time she felt this untroubled and happy.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the long ass delay in this chapter it's been a busy week with college work and my sister was taken into hospital (turns out nothing too serious). Anyway thankfully I finish college in a few weeks then I'm free! So here's chapter 14, it turned out a lot more…well…you'll see, let's just hope my mother never finds my fanfiction account lol. (Yikes this chapter is the longest yet, at a massive 12k+ words :O)**

Brittany prodded along the empty corridor of McKinley high contently, her ponytail swaying from side to side, footsteps echoing ever so slightly on floor. She had been in History class but asked to go to the toilet, she decided that walking there as slow as possible was the most fun way, that or it was the best way to kill time. She kept thinking about the bet her and Santana had made the previous night. Tonight would be the night – she had to admit she was nervous, although she wasn't entirely sure why. She had had sex before; hell Santana had done stuff to her before, yet she couldn't quite shake this feeling. She was both anxious and excited and her stomach had been doing summersaults all day and was now the real reason why she was going to the toilets. It was kind of weird. Thinking about Santana, Brittany suddenly realized she could hear her voice, had the girl really taken over her thoughts that much? She shook her head and realized that was silly. She came to a stop and blinked, realizing that the reason she could hear Santana was because she was nearby. Brittany quickly bolted to the corner and peered around to where she knew their lockers were. Santana was rummaging around in her locker and Puck with his back to Brittany was talking to her. Brittany felt really bad, this was the second time she'd eavesdrop on Santana, but their tones sounded serious.

"I don't get it," shrugged Puck. "What is with you lately? You never wanna hang out anymore, you're always around that Brittany chick" he whined.

"Daww, feeling left out?" Santana mocked, shoving a folder into her locker.

"Well if you must know…yeah…a little. What's with you and this chick? Unless you're trying to get into her pants I just don't get your angle-"

"What?" said Santana sounding irritated. "Look here," began the Latina, slamming her locker shut, forcing Brittany to jolt her head back around the corner and out of sight. "I know what you're thinking, she's popular, and she's a cheerio-"

"Our mortal enemy" Puck cut in. "Man, people like us? Like the Glee club and stuff? You have to get it into your head chica, that they aren't like us, OK? Cheerios think they are above everyone; Brittany and you are just in different leagues. Cause folk like glee club and us? We're outsiders man, and you're an outsider. She ain't. She's a hot white blonde chick, probably a daddy's girl - who's going to graduate with mediocre grades, be voted prom queen, and get married to some douche. Then two years after graduating have a kid while her husband is away at work. I know this cause I'm a pool cleaner – I'm usually the hot dude that wives cheat on their husbands with at home."

Brittany listened intently as she heard a small laugh escape Santana's mouth.

"Look Puck" Santana began softly. "I know you…we…both got burned by Quinn, and OK I don't like the cheerios as much as you do, but you're going to have to realize that not all of them are heartless bitches, granted most of them are," she added sassily. "But Brittany's different. She's my friend, she actually puts up with my shit, OK? She's not like the other cheerios…she's not like anyone…"

Brittany leaned her head against the wall as a heartened grin spread across her face.

"Besides she'll be in glee club with us soon," Santana continued. "That has to count for something."

Brittany didn't realize Puck was in the Glee club too. Though now that she was thinking about it, his guitar was up in Santana's tree house so she supposed that made sense.

"Yeah, whatever" Puck said dismissively. "She's probably been sent to destroy it from within."

"Ok now you're reaching, I'm done with this conversation-"

"I'm just worried about you, you've been acting differently" Puck cut her off.

Brittany heard Santana sigh. "Puck, that's sweet of you, really, but I'm fine."

"Yeah?" he asked uncertainly.

"Yeah" said Santana. "Now go on, get outta here I was supposed to be in class ten minutes ago, remember to pick Britts and I up tonight"

"Sure" said Puck as he jogged down the opposite end of the hallway and turned left out of sight.

Brittany quickly turned around her corner and walked toward Santana. The Latina spun around, hearing her footsteps; she immediately crossed her arms and leaned back against the lockers. Brittany came to a halt in front of her.

"You stalking me Blondie?" she asked, eyes narrowed but her lips forming a small smile. "How long have you been listening?"

"Not long, honest," said Brittany earnestly. "Besides I don't think it counts as stalking if it's your best friend," she said coyly.

"Oh? I'm your _best _friend now, am I?" smirked Santana.

Brittany nodded her head happily. "Mhmm, yup"

Santana unfolded her arms, her features softened as she smiled warmly at her. "You're my best friend too"

"Good. Uhm…" Brittany began and momentarily looked down the hallway where Puck just disappeared. "Is Puck mad at you or something?"

"Huh? Him? No…" said Santana waving her hand dismissively. "He's just a bit protective of me sometimes."

"OK well, I don't want him to feel bad just cause there's another person who wants to protect you now" Brittany said shyly looking down at her sneakers. She looked up through her lashes at Santana who had a humbled glint in her eyes.

"And what is it you think I need protecting from?" she asked quietly.

Brittany spun on her heels and shrugged. She didn't know, she just knew she wanted to. She stopped in surprise when Santana reached forward and began playing idly with one of the pleats in her cheerio skirt, her fingers grazing her thigh momentarily.

"So uh…I'm really looking forward to tonight," Santana said, her voice was deep and discreet. She began running her fingers through the pleat, tugging at the hem slightly, it seemed to gravitate Brittany closer to her.

"Y-yeah me too…bowling with glee club should be fun, right?" Brittany laughed nervously.

Santana gave her a short, amused chuckle then dark eyes locked with bright blue.

"You know that's not what I meant," said Santana lowly, letting go of her skirt and leaning into Brittany's side. "I can't wait to take you home" Santana said huskily. Brittany felt herself gulp and quiver slightly as the sensations of Santana's breath and proximity washed over her.

"Just remember Santana," Brittany began slyly. "I'm not really your bitch, don't let that silly comment go to your head"

"We'll see" Santana smirked. "Anyways, I better get to class aforez Pillsbury sends out a search warrant for me." Brittany gave her a confused look. "School councilor, she's always keeping tabs on me, it's annoying" Santana elaborated.

"Oh…" Brittany said a little disheartened. Just another thing she didn't know about Santana. "You know you can talk to me about anything, anytime right?"

"What? Oh no," Santana said laughing a little. "I don't actually receive counseling from her, although she sure as hell likes to try"

"Why do you think that is?" Brittany asked curiously.

Santana pouted then shrugged. Brittany looked down and noticed she had begun playing awkwardly with her fingers. She knew she was deflecting from something, but decided not to probe further.

"I'll see you tonight Blondie" winked Santana.

"Huh? Oh yeah…ok…" Brittany mumbled watching her leave and found herself waving more at Santana's swaying ass in that skirt than Santana herself.

Later on that night Puck was waiting in his truck outside of Brittany's house. She had decided to wear grey slacks, a sleeveless limited edition Minnie mouse Disney t-shirt (that she had won from a competition) and a matching grey paperboy hat. She ran out in the warm summer evening air toward the road.

"Have fun" her dad called from the porch.

"I will" Brittany smiled at him reassuringly. It sure was odd but nice having him back and not having to worry.

"Sup' chica" Puck said as she hopped in and slammed the door shut.

"Hey Puck" she said politely. She felt weird, overhearing him earlier in school talking to Santana, it was clear he didn't trust her for some reason. Maybe he was just jealous of how close her and Santana had become, although she couldn't deny that if the roles were reversed, if someone came along and was taking her best friend Santana away, she'd probably feel the same.

Once they reached Santana's house Brittany watched the Latina lock her house and stride toward the truck. She was wearing red pumps, skinny jeans and a simple black and red striped tank top. Her hair was down and she had minimal make-up on, different from usual, she looked pretty but in a simple, stripped-down way. Brittany was always torn between attraction and envy when she seen her. Santana opened the door at her side and eyed her up and down.

"Hey handsome" she smirked at Brittany.

"Hi" Brittany said sheepishly and felt a blush on her cheeks. She looked down. God, already they were at 'hi' and she was lost, there's no way her plan for tonight would work if she kept acting like this.

Almost as if Santana heard her inner-thoughts, she gave an entertained chuckle and hopped up, clambering over Brittany to sit in-between her and Puck. Brittany shut the door once she was in.

"Hey, not-so-handsome" Santana quipped as she settled down between them and gave Puck a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Yeah, yeah" he said and slapped her thigh playfully, leaving his hand lingering there for perhaps longer than warranted.

Brittany's stomach felt heavy as she frowned between them. She didn't like it. She didn't like him touching her, her kissing him, why didn't Santana kiss her? Maybe she was being silly, Santana was gay and Puck was her friend, or maybe the reality was she didn't like anybody touching Santana that wasn't her.

They arrived at the bowling alley and walked into a semi-crowded building. Brittany looked around; the walls were lit by neon pink and blue lights as the sound of clunking bowling balls hitting pins echoed around the room. At one end of the large room there was a soda and candy stall and at the other a pizza pallor, the middle was full of small round tables where families were sitting eating or getting ready to play. This place was kind of cool she had to admit; maybe she'd take her dad here.

"Ladies!" said Rachel as she came skipping towards them. She grabbed both their hands and pulled them to an area in the corner where a group of people were sitting around three tables and were occupying two bowling lanes, Brittany recognized a few of them from Karofsky's party.

"Hello everyone, this is Santana and Brittany, they'll be joining Glee cub! As recommended by yours truly," said Rachel doing an obnoxious courtesy. "So!" she said clapping her hands together. "Let's introduce everyone, _this _is Sugar, she can't really sing, her father just provides the club with financial support but she sway's marvelously in the background!"

"So uh…" came a nasally voice from Sugar as she looked between Santana and Brittany. She was dressed in bright pink and had lots of golden jewelry on. She stared right at Santana. "You're Santana Lopez right? I've heard about you, you're the badass lesbian Latina that everyone is supposed to be scared of or something. Whatever. I heard you were in juvy because you killed a puppy, but that's totally not OK with me, puppy's should only be killed for fashion purposes," she paused for a moment. "Sorry! Asperger's!"

Santana raised a finger and looked like she was about to go on one of her rants but Brittany clasped a hand around her wrist and leaned into her ear.

"Please Santana, try be nice and not push people's buttons, OK?"

"Eugh…" Santana looked between Sugar and Brittany then rolled her eyes and forced a smile at Sugar.

"_Moving on_" Rachel cut in and motioned her hand to an Asian couple sharing the same seat. "That's Tina and Mike, Mike is our other dancer Brittany"

"Hi" Brittany smiled at them.

"You of course already know Finn, Puck and Mercedes," said Rachel pointing to them individually.

"Satan" Mercedes quirked an eyebrow at Santana.

"Wheezy" Santana smirked back.

"You two know each other?" Brittany whispered into Santana's ear. The Latina looked to the side at her and nodded subtly.

"And this is Sam" said Rachel and motioned her hand at a boy with bright blonde hair and rather large lips.

"Jesus Christ, is that your mouth or did your face grow a vagina?" Santana asked staring at Sam, a look of sheer stupefaction on her face.

The rest of the group snickered, Brittany had to purse her lips and try not to laugh. The boy called Sam looked between Mercedes and Santana and then bowed his head in embarrassment.

"Uh…anyway…moving on…" Rachel stuttered and pointed at a small boy with large sticky up hair in the shape of a quiff.

"That's Rory…he's Irish so you might not understand what he says" she said in a faux whisper.

The boy just skewed his mouth and waved his hand awkwardly.

"This," said Rachel a little more excitedly. "Is Kurt and Blaine" she said motioning toward two boys, one dressed in a rather odd fashion and the other Brittany recognized as the bowtie boy with extremely gelled hair that she often seen around with Rachel. Tonight was no different; he was wearing a black shirt with a bright green bowtie.

"Oh believe me," Santana started "I saw you two as soon as I walked in here, you're practically _flaming_ from the other side of the freakin' room" Santana deadpanned.

"I like her" said Kurt smiling a little.

Santana smirked and crossed her arms. "Oh and _gell boy_?" she said to Blaine as he raised his thick eyebrows in response. "Please take off that bowtie, it's giving me epilepsy"

Again a few people laughed, Kurt included and it made Brittany relax a whole lot more, just glad that Santana had gotten through the group without offending anyone. Well, apart from Sam maybe.

"Oh!' said Rachel suddenly as a boy with glasses in a wheelchair came wheeling up. "This is Artie, our resident glee rapper"

"Sup y'all" Artie said cocking his head at Santana and Brittany.

The blonde giggled. "You're cute," Brittany said. "You're like a transformer or something"

Santana glared at her.

"Uh…OK" said Artie awkwardly, fixing the side of his glasses.

"Anyway," Rachel interrupted them. "We're all going to split into two groups and have a little friendly competition! Whoever wins at bowling between us has to chip in and buy everyone pizza," said Rachel like some sort of event-organizer. "But first, we've all been here for a half hour or so, you two should practice for a few minutes in that lane, it's not being used, maybe get a feel for the balls-"

"Wanky" said Santana as Brittany giggled. "Alright, alright, c'mon Britt-Britt, let's get our practice on."

Santana grabbed her by the wrist and led them over to the next bowling lane. Brittany looked back at the rest of the group who now appeared to be talking amongst themselves and drinking soft drinks.

"They seem like a cool bunch" Brittany commented as she stood beside Santana.

"Yeah, you do know that you're going to get shit from the cheerios for being in Glee club, right?" Santana said seriously.

Brittany looked down. She had thought about it but it never really fazed her.

"I don't care, as long as I have you, I'll be fine," she said honestly, smiling shyly to the side at Santana. Santana smiled back a little. "So…I haven't done this in years," Brittany said stepping forward and grabbing a pink bowling ball from the side. She looked down at it uncertainly.

Santana was suddenly in front of her also looking down at the ball in her hands. Brittany felt the heat from the other girl's body and tensed up a little.

"You see these holes here?" said Santana, a devilish smirk on her face. She traced around one of the three holes with her index finger slowly. "You put your fingers in there…nice and slow…to begin with" she whispered.

"I…uh…" Brittany stuttered almost dropping the ball and quickly looking between Santana's hand and her lips. Brittany rolled her eyes. "You're doing it again Santana" she chastised.

"Doing what?" Santana smiled almost innocently.

Brittany just gave a hollow laugh and shook her head. Honestly, arrogance wasn't a trait she usually found attractive in a person, but with Santana she just found it strangely…charming.

Brittany ushered Santana out of the way and threw the ball down the lane. It spun slowly eventually hitting the pins at the far end, she only knocked down four before the ball sank pathetically into the side gutter. Santana snorted behind her.

"Nice try Blondie" she jested.

"I'd like to see you try" Brittany retorted.

Santana strode forward, a swagger in her stride; she picked up a small black bowling ball. Santana flicked her hair over her shoulder and winked back at Brittany before cracking her neck muscles by tilting her head from left to right, like some sort of ritual and rather graciously bowled the ball forward. The ball moved fast yet slow, rolling yet gliding at the same time and never straying from its path. It hit the pins straight in the middle and Santana knocked them all down. The strike sign lit up in the screen above their lane. Brittany huffed as Santana walked back to her and shrugged smugly. Words weren't apparently needed.

After a few practice shots they rejoined the rest of the group and Rachel split them up into two groups. Blaine, Kurt, Mercedes, Brittany, Sam and Rachel on one team. Santana, Finn, Puck, Rory, Mike and Tina on the other. Sugar refused to take part.

"I just don't see the point when I can afford to buy you all pizza anyway, but it's OK you guys go ahead, I like watching the poor battle it out…" Sugar said airily, the rest just stared at her as she sat in between the two groups.

The groups took their turns and the score was very close. Santana had, rather amazingly, bowled a strike on every one of her turns.

"Brittany? You're last up," said Rachel clapping her on.

"Please do this…remember I'm poor" Sam said.

"Ssh!" Mercedes hushed him and nudged him with her elbow.

Brittany took a ball, gulped and looked up at the score. Only her and Santana had yet to bowl for this round, ultimately deciding the winner. Assuming Santana would continue what she's been doing all night and hit another strike, she herself would have to bowl a strike to get a draw for her team (assuming Santana did another strike on her next turn), if she misses one pin it will be a loss, and all night she had only managed to take around half the pins down. She sighed. It was pointless. Half the glee club would already not like her for making them pay out.

She looked down at her ball but then suddenly the hairs on the back of her neck began to stand up slightly, almost as if she were being watched. She turned around. Rachel was whispering something away to Santana but Brittany knew she wasn't listening. The Latina was sitting there, legs crossed, arms draped over the back of each chairs beside her, her eyes darker than usual, simply glaring at Brittany with the smallest of smirks on her face. The blonde bit her lip anxiously. That look looked familiar, it was the same look she gave her in the shower room and that night in her kitchen. Her brown eyes were luminous; there was something almost predatory about it.

Clearing her throat and trying to ignore her heartbeat she turned back around and looked down the long alley. The pins suddenly seemed a lot more far away. She sighed. Here goes nothing. She bowled the ball, throwing it a little harder than usual and…

Strike?

Brittany's eyes bulged as her ball clashed heavily into the pins, making them all tumble and fall over. She turned back around with a large grin on her face. A few of her group ran up and hugged her; Sam lifted her off the ground for a moment.

"All we need now is Santana to hit anything less than a strike!" Sam said excitedly.

"Please, like that's going to happen. She's been bowling them all night," said Mercedes.

Santana walked by them, her arm grazing Brittany's and picked up a bowling ball. The rest watched in anticipation as Santana stood for a second, ball in hand, and suddenly bowled it. Brittany thought it strange because she didn't do her usual routine beforehand. Before she could process this though, the ball had already hit all the pins. Except for three.

Brittany suddenly heard groans from one side and cheers from the other as her group came up to her and patted her roughly on the back. Rachel squealed then hugged her. She couldn't stop laughing as Rachel and Kurt simultaneously kissed her on each cheek.

"Mrmph…well whatever" Santana shrugged. "I'm going to get a drink" she said as she strode away toward the soda bar.

Brittany broke away from the rest of the group and watched her curiously.

Rachel came up to her. "Brittany, what kind of pizza do you want? On the house of course, courtesy of the losers" she said and stuck her tongue out at Puck.

"Oh, pepperoni, it's my favorite" she smiled. A bunch of them walked over to the other side toward the pizza counter.

"OK, can you go ask Santana to cough up, I _would_ but…well…let's just say she's a lot more likely to give money to a pretty blonde like you" Rachel beamed, patted her back and waltzed off before she could object. Brittany watched her leave, she was beginning to think Rachel was playing matchmaker between her and Santana. That's a nice thought but only worked when both parties were interested. Brittany sighed and looked across to the other side of the room. She made her way over to Santana from behind. The other girl was sitting alone on a stool at the drinks counter; she was twirling her straw absentmindedly. Brittany stood behind her and watched as ice cubes churned around in her rather large coke glass.

"Hey" Brittany said as she pulled out the stool next to her and sat down.

Santana merely began sucking at her straw, drinking in slowly, looking forward at nothing in particular.

Brittany leaned forward a little to get a better look at her face. "You did it on purpose," Brittany said knowingly.

That got her attention. Santana looked to the side at her. "Did what on purpose?" she mumbled, straw still in mouth.

"Lost" Brittany said simply. "You didn't bowl the last ball like you usually do, the only thing that confuses me is why? Why'd you do it? I mean…you're super competitive"

Santana stopped drinking. "Yeah…well…" she sighed and Brittany took that much as an admission. The Latina looked briefly over her shoulder back at the rest of the group that was now munching down on pizza. "I didn't want them to lose," she said turning back around.

"How come?" Brittany asked.

"Well…I guess I wanted you to win"

Brittany's heart tightened. "Not wanting them to lose and wanting me to win are two completely different things"

"Sounds the same to me" shrugged Santana indifferently.

"Not quite" Brittany smiled faintly. "Uhm…excuse me?" Brittany directed toward the man serving drinks behind the counter. "Can I have a straw?"

"Sure thing" he said as he bent down beneath the counter and held out a container of various colors of straws.

"Thanks" she said as she took the yellow one then shuffled her seat closer to Santana's. She dipped the straw into Santana's drink, leaned over and and took a sip. She smiled over at Santana who simply arched her eyebrow.

"Well," Brittany said slowly. "It's not like you're going to drink all this by yourself" she said eyeing the tall glass.

"Mhmm" Santana grumbled disapprovingly, side-eyeing her.

Brittany went to hold her straw but met Santana's hand as she was doing the same. She leaned over again and took another sip, keeping her eyes on Santana as their finger knuckles grazed each other's. Brittany smiled a little. It felt nice. While sipping, Santana blew bubbles into the drink causing Brittany to giggle.

"Don't," she said playfully shoving Santana in the arm.

Santana's eyes traveled from Brittany's eyes down to her chest. "Your top is cute," she noted.

"Thanks" Brittany blushed. "It's a limited edition, I won it in a competition. I have a lot of Disney stuff, I don't watch a whole lot of other movies cause they're not as awesome as Disney movies you know? I mean, I know everyone likes Disney but not as much as me, I can probably answer any question on any movie, I wish I had them all though, then again if I owned every movie I'd probably never leave my house… boy, I'm rambling aren't I?" Brittany laughed, tugging at her cap.

"You are," said Santana. "But I'm listening" she smiled.

Brittany's heart skipped a beat, she was pretty sure Santana had disrupted it's regular rhythm by now. "Well, uh, I only came over here to say Rachel wants your money"

"Ah," smiled Santana in realization as she sat up a little and took ten dollars out of her back pocket. "Here" she said as she handed Brittany the note, their fingers skimming briefly.

"Are you coming to eat pizza with us?" Brittany asked, pointing her thumb over her shoulder.

Santana sipped her soda once more before answering. "In a bit"

"OK," Brittany said twiddling the note in her hand. "But…" she said slowly, a smirk across her face. "Just to let you know that…this won't be the first time I'll be taking money from you tonight."

"Is that so?" Santana smirked. "I think you're forgetting that I lost on purpose at bowling, I'm not going to do the same thing twice."

"Santana…" sighed Brittany as she stood up from her stool. "I'm going to win this bet, there's nothing you can do about it, so I think you should let the idea sink in…and just accept it" she said as she began to walk away, not before turning around and leaning into the back of Santana's shoulder, just beside her ear. "If all goes to plan, you won't be able to stand by the time I'm finished with you" she breathed and felt the other girl shudder. She left Santana with that thought to mull over.

She rejoined the others for a while and ate pizza. She talked to Rachel and Mike for the most part. He asked which dance schools she was interested in getting into. She had no idea. She had never really thought about it, though she supposed she ought to soon. This time next year she wouldn't even be in school.

"Puck," came Santana's voice as she walked over to them. "Give me your keys, I'm going out for a smoke"

"Sure" he said throwing his truck keys at her.

She caught them then sauntered toward the exit, not before throwing a look over her shoulder at Brittany. The blonde shifted in her seat slightly, she could have sworn Santana was inviting her with her eyes.

"So, have you thought about it?" Mike asked.

"Uh…what?" Brittany asked confused, tearing her eyes away from the door Santana just left.

"We were talking about New York?" he said awkwardly.

"Oh! Right," Brittany said feeling rattled. She had completely forgotten they were in the middle of a conversation. "Can you excuse me for a second? I'm going to go check on Santana," she said. She got up and headed toward the exit, barely hearing his response.

She headed outside and went round to the side of the building toward the car park; she had forgotten where Puck had parked his truck. After a second she realized that didn't matter as she saw it, smoke bellowing from an open window. She jogged across and opened the door opposite the driver's side. She quickly jumped in and slammed the door shut.

She shifted in the seat and turned to Santana. The other girl was sitting in the drivers side, head tilted right back on the seat, exhaling smoke up onto the roof of the car, which eventually travelled its way out the side window. Santana's eyes fell to the side as she smirked at the blonde.

Brittany gulped and watched smoke escape her lips once more, fascinated by the way the muscles in her neck moved. Who finds necks sexy, seriously? Brittany shook her head.

"Wait, why do I smell mint?" Brittany asked, suddenly catching an unusual minty aroma.

Santana brought her head forward and merely raised the cigarette she was holding, she hanged her arm out the window and tapped some of the ashes away.

"They're menthol" she said. "Better than normal smokes, want to try?" she smirked holding out the cigarette.

Brittany looked between her eyes and at the offering. She chewed her bottom lip and nodded.

"Come here then" Santana said thickly that made Brittany feel weak at the knees slightly. Brittany gulped and slid along the leather seat till she was right next to the other girl. She took the cigarette off her and took it to her mouth and inhaled. She immediately was overwhelmed by how strong the mint was as it hit the back of her throat. She began coughing out smoke.

"Yeah, it's pretty strong at first" said Santana laughing at little.

"You don't say" Brittany choked out, handing it back. Santana threw it out the window.

They were immersed in silence as Brittany began to notice how close they were sitting. "I was wondering something," Brittany began quietly and quickly placed her palm on Santana's thigh.

Santana raised an eyebrow down at her hand then back at Brittany. "Oh?" she asked interestedly.

"Why is there a silly rumor about you killing a puppy going around?" she said giggling a little. Santana smiled amusedly. "I know that can't be true, so…what were you really in juvy for?"

Santana's smile faded as she sighed a little, scratching her forehead. "It's not that I don't trust you," she said firmly. "It's just…I don't really want to talk about it…" she mumbled as she began rubbing her thumb against her palm and playing with her fingers again.

Brittany looked down at her fidgeting. "You're nervous," she said. Santana simply frowned at her. "You do this thing with your hands when you're uncomfortable, I dunno if you know you do it, but you do," Brittany said matter-of-factly. "Anyway, you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to, but I'm here if you do" she said and moved her hand to take Santana's. It was warm and tingly.

Santana looked down at her hand, interlinked their fingers and simply looked at Brittany with a solemn expression.

"You're so nice" Santana said quietly.

"I know" she smiled as they entered a comfortable silence. The distant noise of dogs barking and cars driving could be heard, as well as sounds from the bowling place. Brittany sighed contently as Santana squeezed their hands together a little more tightly.

"We should probably head back in" Brittany pouted, unable to mask the regret laced in her tone. She enjoyed herself tonight but spending time alone with Santana just seemed a million times better than anything else.

"Or…" Santana said slowly, letting go of her hand putting the keys in the ignition and shifting slightly in the black leather seat to turn to Brittany. Santana then casually rested her arm up on the top of the seat, her arm coming behind Brittany's head and leaned in. Brittany's heart almost exploded as large lips where inches away from her own, curious dark eyes scanning around every inch of her face. "We could totally bail and take Puck's truck back to mine. I've got a bet to win, remember?" Santana breathed against her lips.

"Oh…" Brittany practically moaned at the feeling of her hot breath tickling her face, sending goosebumps down her arms, the scent of nicotine swirling with mint in the air. She swallowed thickly. "What about Puck though? How will he get-"

"Lemme make this clear" Santana interrupted by pressing a finger against Brittany's thin pink lips. She hummed at the buzzing feeling of Santana's skin on her lips. "All night I've been thinking about one thing and one thing only, do you want to know what that is?"

Brittany nodded blankly, Santana's index finger still pressed onto her lips. The other girl let it drop and cupped around the side of Brittany's neck pulling her in. Santana leaned into her crook of her neck, stroking and tucking blonde hair behind her ear under her cap.

"About fucking you," she whispered against the shell of Brittany's ear.

Brittany released a breath she hadn't realized she was keeping in and twisting round on the seat slightly, instinctively buried her face into the side of Santana's neck. She inhaled sharply, tasting her skin ever so slightly against her lips; taking in everything the other girl had to offer. She heard Santana sigh contently in her ear, which just prompted more goosebumps and tingles. She hoped she made Santana feel the same way, completely disarmed and bare. Brittany ran her lips over tanned skin on the other girl's neck, not kissing, just enjoying the feeling of flesh rubbing and sticking together. She hummed contently along with Santana.

"Deja que te bese" Santana whispered into her ear.

Brittany's breathing hitched as she plucked her lips off from Santana's neck. "What does that mean?"

"It means," Santana paused and pulled back to look into her eyes. She leaned forward a little a nudged the tip of her nose against Brittany's playfully. "Let me kiss you" she paused for another beat and for the briefest of moments looked shy. "I've wanted to for a while now," she admitted timidly, again nudging her nose into Brittany's, brown eyes locked with blue.

"Santana," Brittany gave a shaky sigh. "You don't even need to ask"

With that Santana pulled Brittany in with her hand still around her neck and closed the gap. Brittany's lips crashed into Santana's large ones, she instantly felt a warm buzzing sensation travel between them and hummed at the sensation. Brittany inhaled as Santana's tongue ever so slightly poked out and ran across her own lips.

"Santana I…" Brittany gasped pulling away. She didn't know what she was trying to say nor did it matter because Santana had already practically lunged at her, pushing her so she was lying back on the seat, the Latina now straddling her. Santana took off the blondes cap and ran her fingers through her hair. She saw brown eyes scan her body hungrily for a brief second before Santana's lips were back on hers. Brittany's heart began to race. It was wonderful. Her jaw slackened as her lips parted wanting Santana, and the other girl was only too happy to divulge, dipping her tongue in and playing with Brittany's. Tingles. So many of them.

Santana moaned into her mouth as she captured Brittany's tongue and practically sucked on it. Brittany was already lost; she had completely melted into the other girl and with her arms wrapped around Santana, was now desperately clutching and balling the material of her top with her fists.

Santana pulled away ever so slightly, her soft lips sliding over Brittany's. "Fuck," she breathed. "You know technically I'm topping you, right?" she smirked.

"Shut up, and keep kissing me" Brittany groaned, letting go of her top and cupping both her cheeks, bringing her large lips quickly back on top of her own. She felt Santana smile into the kiss. Brittany captured her large plump bottom lip and sucked on it with vigor, she then caught it between her teeth, tugged it playfully and then let it go. Brittany smiled up at Santana who was smirking back down at her.

Santana leaned back down and slowly dipped her tongue back in, swirling it around leisurely, exploring every inch of the blondes mouth. Stroking underneath Brittany's tongue and tickling the roof of her mouth, she was everywhere. All Brittany could hear was her own heartbeat pounding in her ears and all she could feel was Santana's tongue pleasing the inside of her mouth. That pleasure seemed to shoot down to settle in-between her legs.

Their kisses soon became slow, wet and sloppy, sometimes entirely missing each other's lips. Brittany felt Santana slide her hand down her stomach and over the material of her pants, she cupped in-between the blondes legs. They both moaned into the others mouths. Crap. She couldn't take this. This wasn't how her plan was supposed to work out.

"Santana-" Brittany breathed before large lips were back on hers, a tongue dancing fleetingly with her own.

"Mhmm?" Santana hummed as she began stroking Brittany up and down between her legs, the material sticking to her slightly.

"Fuck" Brittany choked, forgetting what she was about to say. Santana began to kiss her jaw and down her neck, mashing her lips firmly onto her pulse point there.

"Oh my god…Santana…I can't…not here," she breathed erratically.

Santana's lips tore away from her skin as the Latina sat up and looked down at Brittany questioningly. Brittany felt a smile tug her lips, she tried not to laugh but Santana looked adorably disheveled; her hair was tussled at the back and her lips were bright pink.

"You said you couldn't wait to take me home…so take me…" Brittany said quietly as Santana's eyes looked at her vividly. She felt conscious as the Latina's eyes ran up and down her body, resting on the place between her legs. Santana pulled her hand away and ran it through her hair.

"Fine" she said, her voice was scratchy and sexy sounding, it made Brittany's heart jump.

Brittany sat up fixing her hair as Santana slid back to the wheel.

"You should strap on," she said. Her eyes bulged as the words escaped her mouth. "I mean strap _in_…your seatbelt…" she said, visibly flustered as she turned on the engine.

Brittany giggled as she placed a hand over her mouth trying not to laugh. Santana was cute when she was flustered.

The journey back to Santana's was in silence, not an awkward silence but an intense one. They had both exchanged wanting looks and were breathing heavily. Once they got there, and got to the front door Brittany felt familiarity wash over her, which oddly gave her a sense of encouragement, of confidence almost. Santana pulled the front door key out of her back pocket. This made Brittany smile even more, finding it funny that Santana had in fact took her advice and not left the key under the plant pot as usual.

They entered the house and Santana immediately kicked her shoes off. Brittany did the same as she closed the door behind them. Santana flicked the lights on and went to the bottom of the stairs, turning around slowly. Her eyes were heavy and lustful, a small smirk on her face, almost like she was goading Brittany to make the first move.

"So, here's what's going to happen" Brittany began shaking her hands at her sides, feeling the last of her nerves shake away with them. "You're going to do as I say, when I say"

Santana gave her an amused look and folded her arms. "Is that right?"

Brittany strode toward her and joined her at the foot of the stairs. "Trust me, things will go a lot smoother if you just do what I say" she whispered, a hint of warning in her voice. Santana looked at her curiously, looking as if she was torn between feeling alarmed or excited. Brittany's heart was hammering, but she tried not to let it show, her nerves had disappeared and was now replaced with a sense of urgency and determination.

Brittany came forward and pressed her lips firmly onto Santana's whilst she was still taken aback. They both moaned as they opened their mouths, their tongues quickly dancing once more.

"Bedroom" Brittany said quickly before sucking on Santana's bottom lip again. Santana began walking backwards up the stairs, Brittany's arms wrapped around her, her body pressing firmly into Santana's, making them clamor up faster.

"You have no idea" Brittany gasped as Santana frantically kissed down her neck and sucked on the skin there. "How long I've wanted you," she said, her breathing hitched as the Latina ran her tongue up her neck. "Wanted you to feel the way you made me feel…the way you pleasured me…"

"Mhmm" Santana moaned into the crook of her neck as they reached the top of the stairs. Santana's lips were quickly back on hers, her tongue snaking out and seeking entrance immediately.

They practically bashed through Santana's door and into her room, Santana staggered a little but Brittany caught her by grabbing her ass at the back. The light was already on in here so Brittany with all her might tore her lips away from Santana. The other girl groaned as their lips wetly burst apart.

They were both already heaving and out of breath. Brittany decided to go for it, her plan, there was no room for second-guessing herself. She grabbed Santana by the arms and brought her into the middle of the room.

Santana looked at her with intrigue, smiling faintly. "What're you doing?"

Brittany stepped back and looked her up and down. "Strip" she commanded.

Santana laughed a little mockingly. "Is this your lame attempt at topping me? Cause I gotta say I'm not-"

Smack.

Brittany slapped her across the face; she retracted her hand quickly and tried not to hesitate. Santana stared at her in disbelief, and if anything looked a little pale from shock.

"Did I stutter or something?" Brittany said flatly, her voice unwavering. "I said _strip_."

It was in the next moment that Brittany realized her instincts were right. Santana's face went from shock, to blank, to processing to…indifference. Brown eyes' went from wide surprise to dark, hooded lust in a matter of moments. Santana sank into submission and that alone made Brittany feel like she was about to explode. She felt want and control flowing through her veins, and the rush she felt when Santana began to slowly take her tank top off made her weak at the knees, so much so she walked backwards and slumped down onto the bed.

Brittany watched the Latina as she threw her top away, her eyes lustful yet timid. She pulled out from her back pocket thirty dollars and threw it on the bedside table, smiling bashfully for a second. Brittany smiled, took out her money and threw it over on top of the other thirty.

Santana was wearing a detailed red-lace bra and as she unzipped her jeans and slowly slid them down her legs, Brittany's heart stopped when she was wearing a matching red thong.

"Like what you see?" Santana said throatily, her fingers tracing the lace but with none of the usual bravado.

Brittany gulped. "Yeah…" she said as her clammy hands gripped the edge of the mattress.

Now standing in her bra and underwear Santana spoke. "W-what do you want me to do now?"

She sounded so timid yet compliant, Brittany couldn't believe how much it turned her on, to see her stripped back in more ways than one. She pinched her thighs together as the ache was beginning to get unbearable. She couldn't take this, maybe things would be easier once she got rid of the throb between her legs. She quickly stood up, discarded her pants, grabbed her top and pulled it off over her head. Santana's eyes went wide as she took in the blonde's body.

"On your knees" Brittany said. Santana dropped to the floor so quickly her knee's thudded meeting the carpet. She was breathing heavy.

"God…you're so obedient" Brittany said breathlessly and was practically overwhelmed by the rush she was getting, her body was buzzing. Santana merely chewed her lip, her eyes running up and down her body.

Brittany unclasped her bra at the back, looking down at Santana. She smirked when the Latina's eyes went wide slightly as her breasts fell free. She then dropped her underwear down her thighs, eventually falling to her feet. Brittany sighed in relief almost as the material was already sticking to her aching sex uncomfortably. She sat back down on the bed and shifted toward the middle a little, she lay down backwards, leaning back on her elbows with her legs hanging off the side of the bed.

"Come here" she said wantonly, motioning with her finger for Santana to come to her.

Santana shifted along the floor on her knees toward the bed. As she came closer, Brittany parted her legs for her, offering herself. Santana's eyes fell to between her legs as a small sound escaped her lips, she was now breathing heavily through her mouth. She stopped at the edge of the bed, in-between the blondes legs.

"It's best if you do me first," Brittany breathed as the hot throb between her legs was now pulsating faster. "Cause like I said, you won't be able to stand by the time I'm finished with you" she smirked.

Santana smirked back a little and wasted no time, placing a hand on each of Brittany's thighs and leaning down to place wet kisses along her stomach. She trailed a wet tongue down her abs, and Brittany felt her muscles compress as it slithered downwards.

"No teasing," Brittany groaned, canting her hips upwards as she looked down at Santana between her legs. "I need you now, just fuck me" she said quickly. She was almost embarrassed at how desperate she sounded.

Santana complied quickly as she trailed her tongue down toward her sex. Brittany shifted her weight to one elbow as she reached forward and gripped the back of Santana's hair with one hand. Santana with her eyes looking up at Brittany, heavy with lust, pressed her lips against Brittany's sensitive flesh, her nose hovering over her clit. Santana inhaled sharply and moaned, it made Brittany blush.

"Fuck, this pussy…" Santana moaned - her hot, moist breath washed over Brittany's sex. "That night in my kitchen, do you want to know a secret?" Santana mumbled against her folds, maintaining eye contact.

Brittany moaned at the little vibrations it was causing. She nodded looking down into lustful brown orbs that had a tinge of uncertainty behind them.

"I-I…when I woke up the next morning, the first I did was I went down to the kitchen, went to the bit on the kitchen counter where you were sitting the night before and…leaned down…just to see if I could still smell you," she paused and tore her lips away from Brittany's folds. Her cheeks turned crimson, it was probably the first time Brittany had seen her look truly embarrassed. "And I have _no idea _why I just told you that" she muttered.

Brittany felt blood rush to her own cheeks, not because she was embarrassed for the other girl, because she was feeling so hot she honestly thought she was going to melt.

Before Brittany could respond, she gasped as Santana leaned back down and closed her mouth around Brittany's clit. She suddenly began sucking and darting her tongue across the already hard and sensitive nub. Brittany groaned sitting up a little more, her grip on the back of Santana's head tightening.

"You're so good at that…" Brittany moaned. "Please," she sighed pathetically. "I need you inside of me, I'm already so close"

Santana swirled and dipped her tongue past her folds and into her wet entrance. It wasn't what Brittany had in mind but her mind went blank at the pleasure and she couldn't complain. Santana fluttered her tongue against her inner walls and Brittany shuddered, feeling like her heart had suddenly sprouted wings and was now fluttering along with it. Santana suddenly withdrew her tongue and replace it with two fingers, delving in.

"Oh…yes…" Brittany gasped and began to rock her hips against Santana's hand. She wanted to lie back and thrash her head around because the pleasure was so dizzying when Santana began to alternate sticking her fingers in, then her tongue, then her fingers again. She gripped Santana's hair even tighter. She felt pressure build in her stomach and she felt like she was bound to implode soon. But she couldn't tear her eyes away from Santana's. This eye contact was intense.

"Look at me when you come" Santana breathed and sucked vigorously on her clit as she delved her fingers back in, pushing them through a little further.

Brittany couldn't look elsewhere as she practically rocked her sex into Santana's fingers and face, pressure building and building. Crap. Santana seemed to hit an extra sensitive spot inside of her and her eyes popped open as her inner walls began to contract around her fingers. Brittany's mouth fell open as a loud, shaky moan escaped the back of her throat, the heat between her legs and her stomach reaching breaking point.

"Ugh…yesss…fuck…fuck…" she muttered as she tumbled over the edge, staring deep into Santana's eyes as she did so. Santana withdrew from her and lapped at her sex with her tongue, bringing her down slowly from her high. The Latina crawled up her body and began lazily kissing her lips; Brittany hummed tasting herself against Santana's lips.

Once she caught her breath she wrapped her arms around Santana and flipped her over so she was now on top. "Stay" Brittany whispered against her lips before climbing off the bed and heading toward Santana's open walk-in closet. Her legs felt kind of wobbly.

She chewed her lip hoping she could use something in here; otherwise her plan would fall apart. She skimmed through Santana's clothes searching.

"What are you doing now?" asked Santana from behind her still on the bed, her voice was deep and curious.

Brittany shot her a glare over her shoulder, not bothering to answer her. Santana audibly gulped, the blonde had to turn around to keep her from seeing her smile. She continued rummaging and came across two housecoats, one white and one black, she took out each of the waist wraps. She then spotted a thin grey scarf and took that too. She was about to turn back when her eyes landed on a light brown colored belt hanging over a pair of jeans. She eyed it for a second, her heart beginning to race again. She took it and ran her fingers over the belt, feeling how it felt against her skin. She gave a small smirk. Maybe…

She turned around with them all draped over her arm and walked toward Santana. She threw the items at the bottom of the bed and stood, simply staring at her. Santana looked out of breath, anxious and lustful all at the same time.

"Take the rest of your clothes off" Brittany said.

Santana, still maintaining eye contact, sat up on her knees on the bed and unclasped her bra. She flung it behind her aimlessly.

Brittany leaned forward and ripped her thong entirely off her body from the front and discarded it. "Too slow" she grunted impatiently.

Santana sat mouth agape. "That was my favorite underwear!" she exclaimed.

"Santana," Brittany sighed leaning toward the end of the bed and taking the belt. She wrapped the buckle end around her right hand once so it was wrapped around her palm. "You _really _don't want to be talking back to me right now," she said, a promise of what's to come.

Santana's eye's darted between Brittany's and the belt she was now running in her hand. She took a deep breath. "W-what are you going to do with that?" she asked.

"Oh _c'mon _San," she said teasingly, a smirk on her face. "You're a smart girl, I'm sure you already know the answer to that"

"I uh…I don't know…" she asked shaking her head a little and looking at the belt uncertainly.

"That's cute" Brittany said simply.

"What is?"

"That you think you have a choice here," she said, her voice deep and her eyes glaring into brown. "Grab a pillow, face down, ass up," she commanded.

Santana simply kneeled there for a second with a vacant look. She hesitated for a moment then grabbed one of her pillows. She put it in front of her, spread her legs and bent over, her ass hanging in the air.

"Like this?" she asked, her head on the pillow, neck craned to the side so she could look back at the blonde.

"Yeah like that, exactly like that…" Brittany sighed throatily. She couldn't believe how compliant Santana was being, the fact that she just did whatever she asked of her turned Brittany on more than it should have. She felt a dull, familiar throb between her legs. She shook her head. She needed to focus. She climbed onto the bed behind Santana.

Her breathing hitched, as she looked down at Santana's ass, then in-between her legs was the girls glistening sex. It was the first time she got a proper look. She licked her lips.

Brittany ran the end of the leather material through the girl's folds, coaxing it in her wetness.

"Oh my god…" Santana breathed, shuddering.

Thwack.

Brittany quickly raised the belt and brought it down hard on her right cheek, the material smacking against her skin. She felt her own sex throb as soon as it made contact.

Santana jolted forward. "Oww! Jesus fuck that hurts" she whined and was about to sit up when Brittany placed a hand on her upper back and forced her head back down.

"Stay still," Brittany said firmly. "It'll hurt at first but I promise it'll feel real good…eventually…"

Santana craned her head back and simply watched her with through hooded lids. The way she was looking at her, nobody had ever looked at her like that - it made Brittany's insides squirm.

Smack.

She brought the belt to her left cheek this time, and harder.

"Jesus" Santana hissed, canting forward.

"Santana," Brittany said impatiently. "If you keep squirming it's going to hurt, also stop clenching…just relax…"

Santana scoffed and rolled her eyes back at her.

As punishment Brittany brought the belt down on her four times in quick successions.

"Mrmphhhfff" Santana screamed something quickly burying her head into the pillow. Her sounds incoherent, muffled against the material. She was now trying to shift away. Wide pink marks now appeared on her skin and Brittany reveled at the sight.

"Well, this just isn't working is it?" Brittany faux sighed. "Stay there…bitch" she added.

Santana brought her head up, her face tingeing red and looked at her with wide eyes. Brittany was slightly surprised that escaped her own mouth too but it was the effect Santana had on her. She got off the bed and wrapped the two housecoat belts around each of Santana's bed legs, tugging at them to make sure they were tightly knotted. She brought the remainder of them up and tied both of them around each of Santana's ankles.

"Spread your legs as far as you can" Brittany directed.

Santana did so, and it still made Brittany's want grow deeper. The blonde fastened the material around her ankles.

"Hands behind your back"

Santana looked back at her cautiously then brought both her hands around to the bottom of her back. Brittany grabbed the thing grey scarf and tied her wrists together, double-tied it to make sure it was extra tight. Santana's face was mashed sideways into the pillow as she began to squirm.

"How am I supposed to move?" she grunted.

Brittany laughed softly. "That's just it, you're not supposed to" she husked, wrapping the belt back around her palm and bringing it down twice on each cheek. Santana gave a strangled moan and jolted forwards, though her movements were confined by her binds.

Brittany did it again and again and again, ignoring Santana's hisses and whines as she began to bring the leather down to behind her thighs as well. She refocused on her ass, smacking the leather on it then smoothing the marks over with her other hand. Pink skin turned to red eventually. Santana trembled beneath her touch and occasionally tried to close her legs, which was futile. After a while, Brittany didn't know how long, she was enjoying herself far too much to keep track of time – she began to notice with every hit Santana's whines were turning into moans, her clenched legs were turning into trembling thighs. The pain was turning into pleasure. Santana even raised her hips a few times, begging for more.

"I could do this for hours" Brittany sighed mischievously.

"N-no…" Santana practically sobbed.

"Aww, look at you," Brittany cooed at her and brought her fingers to Santana's dripping folds. "Pretending that you hate this when I know…I can _feel _how much you're loving this" she breathed as she ran fingers through slippery flesh. She gulped. She hadn't done this to another girl before, but she had done it to herself so she supposed it wouldn't be much different.

Santana moaned as Brittany parted her folds and watched in awe as the wetness collected there seeped out.

"You're so wet" Brittany breathed in amazement.

"Please" Santana said shakily. "I can't take much more of this"

Neither could she. Brittany went for it and slinked two fingers through Santana's folds, curling long digits up inside her.

"Oh…" Santana moaned and craned her neck back to look into blue.

Brittany loved it. Santana felt warm and wet, her insides hugging her fingers. She felt familiar yet new all at the same time. She delved her fingers in deeper, astonished at how soft and velvety Santana felt inside. She took a deep breath.

She wasn't prepared for what Santana started to do. The Latina began rocking backwards into her hand, Brittany's fingers coming out of her with wet popping sounds as Santana's fluids began to cover her hand, only to instantly re-enter her as Santana rocked backwards. She canted her hips forwards and backwards, Brittany delving inside then coming back out with each movement.

"Oh my god…" Brittany breathed watching her in amazement.

After a few moments Santana began to work up a sweat, Brittany could see it gleam on the dark skin of her back. Still, she rode away into Brittany's fingers, Brittany unmoving just watching her.

"You know, you can slow down any time," Brittany teased.

"Can't," Santana grunted. "Feels…too…good" she panted, her backward and forward thrusts becoming faster and more erratic. "Fuck, do something"

Brittany smirked and began pumping her fingers forwards in time to Santana's movements. They both moaned. Brittany keeping her fingers inside, brought the belt down on Santana' ass one more time. Hard. The feel of Santana's insides as she smacked her on the outside was amazing, the way her muscles clenched around her fingers, tensed and relax around her as she pleasured her. Brittany couldn't enough.

"God, you're going to make me come" Santana moaned still rocking backwards and Brittany thrust forwards. Her arm was beginning to get sore but she couldn't stop now.

At this Brittany discarded the belt and leaned over Santana's back, pressing into her as deep as she could get. Her head came to just behind Santana's and the other girl craned backwards. The eye contact was once more intense. It wasn't long till they were both panting into each other's mouths and Santana was clenching and writhing around under Brittany as her orgasm washed over her. Santana thrashed and rolled her hips around for a few moments, cursing and moaning, her eyes rolling back with a look of utmost pleasure on her face.

After a while Santana stopped moving and Brittany withdrew her fingers from her making a wet, slick sound. Santana shuddered as Brittany lay on top of her, both their bodies heaving and sweating. Brittany sat back up, untied the binds around Santana's ankles and wrists and collapsed on her back beside Santana, breathing heavily.

Santana, whose limbs were shaking, simply clamored ungracefully over to her and collapsed on top of her.

"Oh my god…" Santana breathed into her neck and Brittany gave a hollow laugh, still trying to catch her breath. "Best. Sex. Ever." Santana said and Brittany blushed then giggled a little. Santana sat up and grabbed the comforter, bringing it over the bottom half of their bodies.

"Seriously" she insisted.

"I've…I've never done anything like...that…before" Brittany blurted out, suddenly feeling embarrassed about the whole thing. Santana's satisfied hum put her at ease though.

"Thank you," Santana murmured against her cheek as she planted a soft kiss there. "That was seriously amazing," she said as she sat up and moved to the edge of the bed looking around for something.

Brittany skewed her mouth uncertainly; the way Santana had thanked her made it seem more like she had performed a service. Brittany sat up on the bed and watched as Santana slipped her thong back on then pressed her bra against her front. "Clip my bra back on will you?" Santana asked, sweeping her long hair to one side and looking back at Brittany.

Brittany nodded and clipped it at the back, pulling the two straps up Santana's arms delicately. She then trailed her fingers down Santana's spine, running over the bumps all the way down to the bottom and then ran them slowly back up. They both sat in silence as Santana just watched her from over her shoulder; Brittany paused and looked to her as a small smirk appeared on her face.

"So our bet," Santana said brazenly as she sighed loudly and looked down to the floor. "I think you won"

"You _think _huh?" Brittany smirked and placed a small kiss onto the back of Santana's shoulder. Santana leaned away and grabbed the money from the bedside table. She placed it in-between her middle and index finger and held it out at the blonde.

"Sixty bucks, thirty of which is mine…it's yours," she said as Brittany went to take it but then Santana pulled it away. "But I was thinking" she continued and had a familiar confident glint in her eye; she turned around on the bed to face Brittany. "We should totally uh…" she paused and began tracing the edge of the dollar bills down the side of Brittany's arm; the blonde felt the rough paper tickle her skin. Santana chewed on her lower lip. "Make a habit of this," she said seductively.

Brittany blushed, not only for the suggestion but because even though Santana's eyes should have been on the dollar bills now stroking up and down her arm, Brittany knew her eyes were really on her bare breasts. Santana licked her lips ever so slightly and it made Brittany squirm a little on the spot.

"What do you mean?" she asked questioningly, eye's darting between Santana's hand and her lips. She knew what Santana meant of course, but she needed clarification.

"We can be friends who occasionally have awesome…" Santana paused, her eyes tearing away from Brittany's torso to lock with blue eyes. "Bets" she finished, smirking.

Brittany sighed, smiling a little. "And by bets you mean sex"

Santana didn't answer; instead she trailed the money from Brittany's arm to along her chest and began tracing circles around one of her nipples with it, rough paper rustling over sensitive flesh, quickly making it hard. Brittany let out a shaky breath. Santana merely smiled mischievously at her. She took that as a yes.

"I-I don't understand you Santana" Brittany gasped as the Latina began doing the same to her other breast. "You said sleeping with me would be weird cause we're friends and you don't date people-"

"Actually" Santana interrupted, still tracing slow circles with the dollar bills. "Do you know what's weird?"

Brittany shook her head.

"This…doesn't feel weird," she said, her brow furrowed in confusion. She stopped tracing the dollar bills over her skin and threw it casually back on the bedside cabinet. Santana's eyes were narrowed and she was looking around at everything but the girl in front of her. Brittany knew she was contemplating something.

"What're you thinking?"

"I'm thinking…" Santana said slowly as she began tracing a fingertip around the ridges of Brittany's collarbone. "We should have an arrangement, one that meant we could fuck whenever we wanted"

"I uh…" Brittany staggered. "Why would it have to be called an arrangement? I don't understand"

Santana's lips formed an underhanded smirk. "Because it's just about sex and nothing else, it's not about…you know…feelings or anything" she mumbled, her eyes shifting to the side.

Brittany raised her eyebrows and tilted her head, recapturing the girl's attention. "You say that like you have a choice in the matter."

"Mrmph…well," Santana said flippantly, rolling her eyes a little. "_Anyway_" she pressed on. "Arrangements also have ground rules," she stated.

"Rules? You don't like rules"

"Ah," Santana said as she began tracing from her collarbone slowly up her throat and along her jaw. Tingles. "But these rules are a lot of fun"

"They are?" said Brittany, her attention darting between Santana's brown eyes and her tracing finger. "What kind of rules?" Brittany asked, not quite believing she was considering this.

"Mhmm" hummed Santana pleasantly. "See, it would be like this," Santana paused and let her hand fall to Brittany's thigh over the bed covers; she gave it a little squeeze. "Our 'arrangement' would be mutually beneficial, we would continue being friends like normal but-"

"_Best _friends" Brittany corrected her.

"Yeah…best friends," said Santana smiling at her fondly. "Anyway, we continue being friends outside of our arrangement, but our arrangement means…for example…whenever I text or phone you saying I want you, you'll come, no matter what you're doing. You don't argue, we don't talk about it, we don't hang out, if I call you specifically for sex, that's what we do" Santana said in a monotonous tone, almost as if she were arranging some sort of business transaction.

"W-what?" Brittany began, feeling slightly incensed. "You booty call me like some sort of slut?" she frowned and winced her face. She couldn't believe Santana was being this…cold.

"Relax" Santana said a little more warmly and brought her hand up to cup Brittany's cheek. "I think you're forgetting it's an _arrangement_"

Brittany frowned. She wasn't following.

Sensing Brittany's confusion Santana went on to clarify. "Meaning this won't affect our friendship outside of it, and also that it works both ways?" she said lowly, quirking an eyebrow.

"You mean I can call you whenever and you'll come?"

"A few times if I'm lucky" she winked. She licked her lips and began peppering small kisses over Brittany's lips. "So…are you in?" she smirked against her lips.

Brittany felt her eyelids flutter shut as Santana began placing soft, wet kisses up her jaw then pressing them firmly against her cheek, she felt the blood rush to her face. She sighed. Her resolve was already weakening.

"I dunno Santana" Brittany said uncertainly. No feelings? She already had _many_ feeling about this, some of them bad. She had never felt this way about anyone, the way she feels about Santana, maybe she was just setting herself up for disappointment, possibly a broken heart.

"C'mon" murmured Santana persuasively against her cheek, placing another large kiss there, her lips making a moist smacking sound. Brittany shuddered. "You're hot, I'm hot…everybody wins"

"I-I'll think about it," said Brittany. What was she thinking? Oh that's right, she wasn't.

"Good" smirked Santana pulling away. The Latina spun back around and stood up from the bed stretching once more.

Brittany watched her with interest. "For me to agree to this…" she said slowly, ignoring the voice in the back of her head telling her it was a terrible idea. She knew it was, but she couldn't deny the thought of having Santana whenever she wanted made her excited. "There's some things I don't understand, I mean, are we aloud to see other people? What if I'm on the other side of the world…not that I'm going to the other side of the world…"

Santana chuckled a little. "Well obviously we can't call on each other when it's physically impossible to get to the other person, so that's OK" she said folding her arms. Brittany ran her eyes up and down her body; she was standing there simply in her red thong and bra. She was stunning. "As for other people…uh…since this is nothing serious or anything and just about sex" Santana paused and they both glanced at each other. Santana was saying a lot more with her eyes than she was with her mouth. She almost sounded like she needed to hear those words more than Brittany. "I guess we can do whatever we want with other people, but I…I'd appreciate if you told me beforehand, just so…I know…" she said awkwardly, palming a hand through her hair and avoiding eye contact.

"Do you have someone else in mind?" Brittany asked tentatively.

"What? No," Santana said quickly, shaking her head. "Why do you?" she asked, her voice quivering slightly. Brittany sensed she was almost afraid of the answer.

"No"

"Ok good" Santana said blowing air out of her mouth, visibly relieved. "I mean uh good that we uh…understand each other"

"Mhm-mhm" Brittany hummed. She wasn't buying it. "Wait – where are you going?" she asked as Santana was at the bedrooms threshold.

"It's almost 2:30, I'm tired, I'm going to bed," she said yawning endearingly.

"Santana," Brittany smiled at her. "Your bed's right here?" she said, patting the one she was lying in.

"Well you haven't agreed to my arrangement" Santana said slowly, almost sadly. She traced her hand up and down the door edge seductively and gave Brittany a deep penetrating look. "And if I sleep in beside you…well…I won't be able to keep my hands off you" she said, her voice deeper.

"Oh…" Brittany gulped. Her mind was racing. There was no harm in trying this arrangement, was there? If she wasn't comfortable with it then they could always forget about it, right?

"I can back out of this arrangement anytime I want, right?" Brittany asked suddenly.

"Of course" Santana said simply.

"OK then…I'll do it…I'm in"

"Yeah?" Santana asked smirking.

"Yeah" sighed Brittany, hating herself that she actually found a smile twitching the corners of her lips.

"In that case…" Santana said lowly as she began walking leisurely toward the bed, her fingers hooking around the thin side straps of her thong and pulling it down gradually till it fell to her feet. She kicked it away and reached the bed. Brittany swallowed profusely and watched her in amazement.

"Lie back" Santana said thickly as she unclasped her bra once more and flung it absentmindedly over her shoulder.

Brittany lay back on the pillow, she was still naked but the comforter covered the lower half of her body. Santana swung a leg over and sat on top of Brittany on her lower stomach. The blonde let a shaky breath escape her lips when the moistness of Santana's sex rested on her lower stomach; she clenched her muscles slightly at the feeling.

"Relax," said Santana smiling down at her. "We're going to sleep, I…I just want to be close to you" she said tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

"You do?" Brittany asked, her voice trembling a little. Her heart was thudding again.

Santana nodded modestly and lay down on top of her, her arms wrapping around the blondes neck, their chests pressing together. Santana's face buried into the side of Brittany's neck and she shuddered a little when Santana, leaning in, placed a small kiss behind her ear and breathed in.

"But I want you to do something first" Santana whispered into her skin, causing tingly goosebumps to tumble down her side.

"Depends what that is" said Brittany feeling a stupid grin spread across her face. She loved this, just her and Santana. The rest of the world seemed a million miles away.

"Ah but we have an agreement, remember?" said Santana with a hint of playfulness. "We don't question each other, whatever the other one wants, the other one gets – no questions, no excuses"

"OK" Brittany said giggling a little. "What is it you want me to do?"

Santana moved her left hand and grabbed Brittany's then guided it down her front. Santana raised her hips slightly to accommodate. She left Brittany's hand down near the apex of between her thighs and set her hips back down, her clit pressing into the underside of Brittany's forearm.

"Put your fingers back inside" Santana sighed into her neck.

Brittany hesitated only for a second then raised her hand and ran two fingers up and down Santana's slick folds; she was still wet but nowhere near as wet as she was. She stilled two fingers at Santana's entrance.

"A-are you sure?" Brittany asked.

She felt Santana nod beside her so she curled her fingers and delved upwards into Santana, feeling her way though. She felt a little tighter than before. Santana's breathing changed.

"Now what?" Brittany asked as her fingers delved a little further into warmth.

"We go to sleep" Santana exhaled calmly.

"But…uh…why like this?"

Santana shifted slightly so her head nuzzled closer into Brittany's ear. She spoke softly against it. "Because when we wake up tomorrow, the first thing I want to feel is you inside of me"

Brittany's mouth fell open and a sound escaped the back of her throat, something between a moan and a sigh.

"Oh, and Britt?" Santana continued.

"Mhmm?" Brittany purred, leaning her cheek to the side to nuzzle closer into Santana.

"If you wake up before me, I want you to start fucking me nice and slow till I wake up…do you understand?"

"I-I…uh…yeah" Brittany said shakily, not quite believing how comfortable they seemed to be with each other. Santana was right; this didn't feel awkward at all.

"Good," she felt Santana smile into her neck and place another small kiss there. "Night Britt-Britt"

"Goodnight Santana" Brittany sighed. They lay there for a few minutes in silence until Brittany felt Santana's breathing steady. She had fallen asleep, the blonde somewhat envied her ability to go to sleep so quickly. Her own heart was still hammering wildly in her chest though. Her fingers inside Santana twitched a little, the position was slightly awkward so she was already feeling her wrist beginning to cramp. She didn't entirely mind though, if Santana wanted her to do this – she would. Santana's soft slumberous breaths drifted over the skin of her neck. Apart from her right arm, she had never felt this relaxed in all her life. Her eyelids fell heavy. She sighed a little, the things she would do for this girl. She eventually fell asleep wondering who really topped who.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the lack of update, college work is demanding but I have my finals shortly so I'll be returning to my usual weekly update soon enough. Also heard about Brittany apparently not graduating at the end of this season of Glee. No me gusta :( Anyway enjoy, let me know what you think! :)**

Brittany stirred feeling dull light hit the back of her eyelids. She slowly opened her eyes and blinked several times. Her eyes suddenly sprang awake, as if she had been dowsed in icy water and her surroundings came into focus. Santana's warm body was still draped over her, naked, from the night before. The Latina was breathing heavily into the crook of her neck still, she seemed deep in sleep. Brittany raised her head a fraction as much as she could and seen that her arm was still wedged between then, she tried to move her hand but then felt faint slickness swarm her otherwise numb hand.

She raised her eyebrows. She was still inside Santana. She was uncertain as to what to do next. She remembered what Santana instructed her to do but she felt embarrassed and silly. She looked around uncertainly, almost as if expecting to find an answer.

Cringing slightly, she began moving her fingers around inside Santana, making small circles, twirling around her insides. If anything she needed to anyway, as her whole hand was cramping.

"Mhmm" hummed Santana into the skin of her neck.

Brittany smiled as she tried not to go too fast, as per Santana's instructions. It was hard to slowly move inside her like this though, she wanted nothing more than to hear those noises Santana was making, but ten times louder.

"Don't stop" Santana spoke into her skin and placed a weak kiss on her neck, her voice was groggy from sleep.

Brittany just shut her eyes contently and concentrated on making smooth patterns inside Santana, thrusting upwards slightly every few seconds.

"Ugh…" Santana let out a low guttural moan as Brittany felt that the girl was already tightening around her fingers. Brittany felt her own eyes roll back as Santana's moan replayed over and over in her head. She'd do anything to hear it again, every day, for the rest of her life even.

Santana's body jolted as her inner walls clenched around long fingers. Brittany arched her back and rolled her body up into Santana's, just feeling the need to be closer to the body on top of hers that was now writhing around slowly. Brittany dragged out her orgasm for as long as she could, still making circling motions despite Santana's insides constricting. Santana was making deep whines, the type of noises that come from the back of the throat. Brittany felt her own center throb a little at the mere sound of it.

Santana's ragged breathing eventually steadied out as her insides loosened around Brittany's fingers. Brittany slowly slid herself out, slipping by wet flesh until her fingers hit the cool air. She began tracing circles around Santana's swollen clit, coating it in her moisture.

"That was a nice way to wake up…" Santana breathed and began chuckling into Brittany's neck. It was a satisfied laugh. It made Brittany's heart beat faster. She felt oddly proud. "You _sure _you haven't done this with a girl before Blondie?" Santana laughed as she moved up a little and began kissing behind Brittany's ear.

Brittany felt giddy and ticklish as she laughed. "No, honest I haven't…why? Did I do OK? Was I good enough?" she asked uncertainly as she slowed down her tracing.

"Oh yeah…" Santana practically moaned lowly as she began nibbling on the ridge of Brittany's ear, causing her to squirm. "I think this arrangement is going to work out just fine" the Latina breathed into her ear and began sucking on her earlobe, tugging it slightly with her teeth.

Brittany shuddered as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on their ends. Brittany ran her other hand slowly down Santana's side, along the outer curve of her breast, over the bumps of her rib cage, down her back until she came to Santana's ass. She heard Santana hiss as she ran a palm over the smooth caramel skin, littered with linear pink marks from last night.

Santana suddenly sat bolt upright, legs still on either side of Brittany's waist, her center hovering just above Brittany's. Santana placed both hands on Brittany's stomach and just looked down curiously at her for a second. Brittany gulped. She could see the slight panic in Santana's eyes suddenly, the uncertainty.

"I…" Santana began and narrowed her eyes down at her. She looked uncharacteristically confused. "What happens now?"

"What do you mean?" Brittany asked.

"I mean, what happens now? I've never really…I mean I don't normally stay…stick around that is…" Santana said tentatively as she simply stared down at her own hands.

Brittany knew what she meant but she had no real answer. Santana was supposed to be the all-knowing one between them, she had no idea what this meant, and she had no idea what they even where – all she knew is what Santana _didn't _want them to be – she didn't want them to be awkward and she certainly didn't want them to be dating.

"I dunno," Brittany spoke after a beat. "You wanna talk about it?" she asked as she removed both her hands from Santana and laid them limply at her sides.

"I don't really talk _after_…or _during _for that matter" Santana said defensively.

"Really? Couldn't get you to shut up last night," Brittany said smugly as a smirk spread across her face.

Santana stared down at her and for a moment Brittany regretted talking back to her. To her relief though a small smile pulled the side of Santana's lips.

"Speaking of which," Santana began, and Brittany was relived to notice her body language relax, her smirk return, her eyes becoming less hardy. Brittany sighed in relief. They weren't awkward. "Where in the hell did that come from?" said Santana, prodding a finger into her stomach.

Brittany giggled a little. "Where did what come from?" Brittany scrunched her nose up.

Santana rolled her eyes slightly. "Last night. You came out of nowhere I…I hadn't expected you to…do that…I mean it's like by day butter wouldn't melt in your mouth but by night…you become this…this…sex goddess" she said and threw her head back in laughter at her own words.

Brittany felt her blood warm behind her cheeks. "Sorry, I was too full on, wasn't I? It's just…you…you were sooo sure that I couldn't top you and I really wanted to prove you wrong, I really wanted to impress you," she mumbled shyly. "Please don't think I'm a freak or anything, I'm sorry-"

"I'm not" Santana cut her off with a smirk.

Brittany smiled and gently clasped her own two hands over Santana's. She just lay there; staring up at the most gorgeous girl she'd ever laid eyes on. Santana smiled timidly back down at her.

"Uh…" the Latina hesitated, drawing her hands back away from Brittany's. "Don't look at me like that," she said quickly.

"Like what?"

"I don't know like," Santana paused and seemed to be searching for the appropriate term. "Like I'm your…_everything_…or something," she mumbled.

"I didn't realize but…I don't know how else to look at you" Brittany admitted quietly.

Santana blinked as she let out a shaky breath. "You uh…you should probably just go," she said quickly.

Brittany's heart sank a little. "G-go?"

"Yeah, you should go" Santana said rather bluntly as she swung over and off of Brittany and sat naked at the side of the bed. "I mean, it's Saturday, you're going out with your dad today so you should probably just go" she continued quickly.

"Uhm," Brittany squeaked as she sat up slowly. "That's not for a few hours at least. I can make us pancakes if you want?" Brittany offered, trying to ease this sudden cold tension.

Santana just shook her head. "I can make my own breakfast, always have. Just go, yeah? I'll see you Monday," she said monotonously, staring down at floor.

Brittany blinked at her, not quite believing. "_Fine_" she scowled climbing out from underneath the covers. She went to the opposite side of the bed and scanned the floor for her clothes. She felt Santana's eyes on her back as she stood up and dragged her underwear up her long legs; she then bent over and cupped her bra back on. She whipped her head around and looked over her shoulder – Santana was sitting watching her.

"It's nothing personal Britt, don't be mad or anything, I just want to be alone, besides you were going to leave soon anyway so…I mean we hang out _all the time"_ Santana said sounding exasperated.

"Sorry, didn't realize I was such a burden" Brittany snapped, rolling her eyes as she flung her t-shirt over her head.

"That's not fair, that's not what I meant," Santana refuted. She got up from bed too, went to her closet and got her housecoat. She blushed a little as she bent down and picked up the waistband for it from the floor.

"I get it Santana," Brittany said as she buttoned up her slacks. She ran a hand through her hair only to realize her hat was still in Pucks truck outside. "We've fucked, so that's all I'm pretty much good for in your eyes" she said flatly. She stormed out Santana's room and began going down the stairs.

"That's not true," countered Santana, following behind her.

Brittany quickly put on her shoes and opened the front door. She was taken aback, for the first time in weeks it was raining. She felt the warm, humid summer air float in from outside. Rain was hitting the ground hard, some steam from the scorching earth bellowing up.

"Well, looks like I'm staying till the rain dies down" Brittany said turning back to face the other girl.

"You know what?" Santana began sounding irked as she crossed her arms and tapped her bare foot against the floor. "I'm sick of you talking to me like you know exactly what's going on inside my head. You fucking don't, OK? Oh and another thing, you're leaving _now_"

"I…what?" Brittany stuttered taken aback by how quickly Santana changed from pleading to anger.

"You heard. Get out my house." Santana said flatly, motioning her head toward the open door.

"But I'll get soaked, it's a twenty minute walk and…I…I…can you at least give me a ride?" Brittany asked, feeling a little panicked.

"Nope" Santana shrugged and forced her eyes to look elsewhere.

They were submerged into a long silence. Brittany opened her mouth several times to say something but nothing came out. Feeling sheer anger and hurt swirling together at the pit of her stomach, she turned on her heel and stormed out into the rain. She heard Santana's front door slam behind her as she neared the end of her driveway.

She was already drenched. Brittany thought the rain was a blessing in disguise, for nobody noticed by the time she got home that she had been crying her eyes out.

Brittany had eventually dried her hair, put on her pajamas and slumped miserably down on her bed, laying her head against her pillow, watching the rain stream down her bedroom window glumly. She sniffed as her nose felt runny from getting caught in the rain, or crying so much. Probably both. She heard someone enter her room behind her.

"Hey kiddo," came her dad's voice. "Thought we were supposed to be going fishing, why're you in your night clothes?"

"It's miserable out," Brittany sighed. "Don't want to camp out in this weather"

"But we always go when I come back, something up? You sound down. Is it your sleep? You and your mom fighting again?" he asked sounding worried as Brittany felt his weight dip the end of her bed.

She had a giant lump in her throat but she blinked and swallowed it, willing her voice to come out steady.

"Dad…?" Brittany breathed out quietly, feeling her chest tighten a little.

"Yeah?"

"H-how…how do you know…when you're in love with someone?" she asked, her voice trembling.

He heard her dad blow out a large breath. "Boy, that's a big question" he said laughing a little. "I mean I can't really give you an exact answer, it's one of those things you just know, you know?" he paused for a moment when Brittany sighed. "But," he continued, perhaps sensing her dissatisfaction with that answer. "I guess, I remember when I met your mom, I remember…I couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, couldn't do much else without her in my thoughts. Every waking moment I just wanted to be with her and when I wasn't with her, I felt lost…like I wasn't quite complete…it's like you almost feel sick when you're with someone in the best possible way but sick when you're without them, in the worst possible way…"

Brittany heard his voice fade and her own stomach felt like it dropped like a ton weight.

"Oh…" she said quietly. She felt sick right now in the worst possible way and all she could ever think about was Santana.

"You want to talk about it?" her Dad asked knowingly.

"Maybe…eventually…not right now though" Brittany said defeated.

Her Dad leaned over a little and patted her thigh sympathetically. They were submerged into a short silence, interrupted only by the rain tapping against her window.

"Pathetic fallacy…" Brittany mumbled absentmindedly into her pillow staring at her window.

"What's that?" her Dad asked confused.

"In literature, when the weather reflects the main characters mood…they call it pathetic fallacy…"

"Oh" said her dad, sounding surprised. "Well I guess you learn something new every day" he laughed a little. "Are you the main character right now?" he asked gently.

Brittany just nodded, not even having the motivation to speak anymore.

"I see," said her Dad as he got up from her bed and stretched a little. "In that case, I better make someone her favorite homemade soup then", he continued as he walked toward the threshold.

"Thank you" Brittany called back to him, feeling the smallest of smiles tug at her lips.

Later on as she went back to her bed, her phone had a missed text message. The blonde switched off her lamp and grabbed her phone from the side table. The message was from Santana, it simply read:

_I'm sorry_

Brittany rolled her eyes as she groaned in frustration, spun around and snuggled into her pillow. She hated Santana. Hated. Hated. Hated. She eventually fell asleep knowing the exact opposite was probably true.

Brittany spent all day Sunday catching up with her Dad in the house as the heavy rain had continued into the next day. She spent hours listening to his close-call tales from his time spent in the Middle East. One half of her was intrigued; the other half of her didn't want to hear any of it at all. Brittany found it extremely hard talking to her Dad about school without trying to mention the name 'Santana' too many times.

All Sunday she had received the same '_I'm sorry' _text message over and over again, and like the first one, she ignored them all. She went to bed early that night so she'd recover for school in the morning. She wasn't surprised to see she had yet another text from Santana. This one was different though:

_Once again, I'm sorry. I know you're reading these. Rachel wants to meet us in the choir room tomorrow morning before class, please come._

Brittany sighed, she supposed she was curious about that, she typed out a reply:

_OK_

Not less than a few seconds later she got a reply:

_Well you know reds my favorite color. I think I recall you asking me my favorite food, so it's Mexican. Just in case you were still wondering. What's yours?_

Brittany rolled her eyes at the text, she found Santana's attempt at suddenly making conversation both funny and pathetic. She hated to admit though…it was pretty endearing.

She typed out her reply and sent it:

_P n J sandwiches, I'm going 2 bed now._

She got not reply as she rolled over and fell asleep.

Come Monday, Brittany got to school and bypassed students in the corridor, wondering if she had taken a wrong turn and missed the choir room entirely. Then she heard it. The hustle and bustle of students seemed to fade away into the background as a voice floated toward her, pulling her toward it. She stopped and walked back to the room she just bypassed. The door was ajar. She slipped in. It was clearly the choir room; there were instruments and chairs sprawled around the place.

On the piano were small speakers attached to an ipod docking station, it was playing a mid-tempo jazzy ballad. The voice sounded familiar but the song didn't. But it wasn't this voice that lured her in here. There was another voice singing along with it. Brittany looked over to the other side of the choir room; Santana was there, walking up and down the other wall looking at various posters and trophies stowed there. She was singing idly to herself, completely unaware that Brittany had entered the room. Brittany had just realized she never heard the other girl sing before.

"_Without a dream in my heart_

_Without a love of my own…"_

Brittany felt slightly breathless. Santana's voice was stunning she hadn't quite expected it. It was low and sultry, yet delicate at the ends. Now she understood why Rachel loved her voice so much. Brittany gulped, of course she had to have the most beautiful voice she had ever heard, just another thing to add to the mounting list of things that were making her fall in love with Santana Lopez. Brittany was expecting to feel livid when she seen Santana, but she just couldn't bring herself to be angry with her.

"Ahem" Brittany cleared her throat.

Santana stopped singing and spun around fast. "Oh, it's you"

Brittany felt slightly overwhelmed; they had only seen each other on Saturday morning, yet she felt their time apart had been longer. She slowly walked forward, and feeling a little nervous held her hand out.

Santana frowned and blinked down at it. "W-what are you doing?" she asked solemnly.

"Dance with me?" Brittany asked softly, forcing herself to into a small smile.

"Uh…I don't really think that's-"

"Please?" Brittany insisted, her voice trembling a little.

Santana looked embarrassed and uncertain. She looked around the otherwise empty room almost as if to check nobody was watching. After a brief pause she sighed then slowly took her hand. Their fingertips grazed at first, and Brittany craving the tingly feeling took her entire hand quickly in hers. She walked Santana to the middle of the room, and moved Santana's other hand around her own waist. Brittany smiled at her eyes, then down at her lips as they began to sway. The song playing ended and restarted.

"Uh Britts, technically we're just swaying on the spot here…" Santana said smiling timidly.

"I know, right? But this way you get to keep singing…" said Brittany softly as she leaned in and rested her chin down on Santana's shoulder. Santana leaned in at her other side and resumed singing as they swayed around.

"_Blue moon, you saw me standin' alone  
>Without a dream in my heart, without a love of my own<br>Blue moon, you knew just what I was there for  
>You heard me sayin' a prayer for<br>Someone I really could care for"_

Brittany shuddered and closed her eyes. Santana's voice melted like chocolate in her ear.

"_And then there suddenly appeared before me  
>The only one my arms will hold<br>I heard somebody whisper please adore me  
>And when I looked, the moon had turned to gold"<em>

Brittany pulled away and looked deep into brown eyes. Santana hesitated once more but kept singing.

"_Blue moon, now I'm no longer alone  
>Without a dream in my heart<br>Without a love of my own"_

Santana's voice quivered at the end slightly and before Brittany could process anything other than the heavenly sound she was hearing and the way the Latina was looking at her as she sang, Santana blinked and suddenly tore away. She headed toward the music player and switched it off, submerging them back into silence and reality.

"The song wasn't finished yet," Brittany pouted.

"Yeah I know," Santana said fidgeting with her hands. "I don't feel like dancing right now"

"Oh," Brittany sighed. "Well, your voice is really, _really_ lovely" the blonde said bouncing on her feet a little.

"Thanks" said Santana looking down, trying to conceal a blush. "I wasn't sure if you were still mad at me or…"

"I guess not" Brittany shrugged and walked a little closer to her. "Look, I can't force you into something you don't want to do, or make you talk about stuff you don't want to…and I don't want to lose you as a friend so…I guess…can we just continue on as usual?"

Santana nodded. "I'd appreciate that," she paused for a moment and look up into blue eyes. "You're OK for our…uh…arrangement though?" she asked, her tone hopeful.

Brittany chewed her lip and looked up in thought. "Honestly?" she paused and her eyes fell back to Santana. "It confuses me. The whole idea makes me uncomfortable. I don't really know how I feel about it or how I should feel about it…all I know is…despite that, I like it and I'd like to keep doing it."

"Really?" Santana perked up, her eyes brightened.

"Yeah," Brittany smiled bashfully. "Cause Friday night was…adventurous…and fun…and I felt free" Brittany paused and blushed at how ridiculous that sounded. She fisted her hand and pounded it against her forehead. "Boy, that sounded stupid, didn't it?" she said laughing a little. Her smile faded as she realized she settled for scraps with this girl though.

"Not at all" Santana said quietly. "Oh," she said as if suddenly remembering something. Santana strode over to her bag, bent down and took out a small white box. "I got you something…"

"You _got _me something?" Brittany repeated, perplexed.

"Yeah, it's kind of to say sorry for the way I spoke to you…treated you…" Santana trailed and looked between the package clutched in both her hands and up into Brittany's eyes. "But also I figured, you kind of need one too so…" she said and held out the box at her awkwardly.

Brittany took it uncertainly. Santana looked at her, urging her with her eyes to open it. She opened the box at the end and took out a small metallic-feeling object. Once it was in her palm she just stared at it.

"It's the latest iPhone," Santana said, although Brittany had already figured out what it was. "Sorry it's not in it's original packing, see I had to take it out so I could set it up for you…uh…I actually spent all day yesterday going round getting numbers and taking pictures of people because when someone phones you their picture comes up on screen. It's pretty cool. Anyway, I've put my number in there, and Rachel's and all of Glee clubs actually. I was going to put music on it for you too but I don't really know what kind of music you like. I figured this was perfect for you…"

"Santana I can't-" Brittany began shaking her head in disbelief.

"Oh! It's on a contract, meaning it's already paid for…for the next 12 months at least…so you don't have to worry about paying for calls or texts."

"I can't accept this" Brittany said dumbstruck. "It's a really thoughtful gift but…this must have cost you a fortune, how did you even afford it?"

Santana smirked a little. "Let's just say my ma's going to make a very angry phone call when she gets her next credit card bill in."

"Santana I can't. You have to take it back" Brittany said, holding it back to her.

"What? No way. Trust me, it's yours" Santana said. "Having to endure an hour long angry phone call's a small price to pay for…" Santana trailed as if stopping herself in what she was about to say.

"For?" Brittany urged, a smile spreading across her face.

"You" she said simply, shrugging and looking downward warily. "Oh I also got you…" she trailed and went back to her bag to get something.

Brittany raised her eyebrows. There was more?

"These" Santana came back and held out an iphone case and in-ear headphones. "The headphones that come with them suck so I got you another pair and I got you a case for your phone, you just snap it on. That way if you drop it, and FYI you totally seem like the dropping type, you won't break it. Also, uh…that night at Karofsky's party…I remember you saying…I mean you sure were yappin' a lot but I remember you saying your favourite animals were ducks because their quacks didn't echo or something so…"

Brittany gave a hollow laugh and looked down at the purple shell case that had a yellow cartoon duck on the back.

"It's cute" Brittany beamed. "Santana I-I don't know what to say…" she said, still shaking her head down at the items she was holding. "Thank you"

"It's the least I could do" Santana shrugged casually. "Anyway I better go, I've got class soon-"

"Wait, aren't we supposed to meet Rachel here?"

"Uh…no…I made that up. Like I said, I wasn't sure whither or not you were still mad at me" said Santana uncertainly.

"Santana don't be silly" Brittany sighed and cocked her head to the side. "I'll always speak with you whenever you want, about anything. I told you that."

Santana let out a shaky breath and nodded. "Yeah, OK. I should go, see you later yeah? Lunch maybe?"

Brittany sighed heavily. "I can't. Coach is making us do routines again, another day without lunch," she pouted.

Santana nodded. "I understand. I don't envy you. I remember what it used to be like," she said and walked toward the door. "I'll see what I can do" she smiled and left.

Brittany felt relief sink in as she smiled and slumped down on a nearby chair, looking down at her gifts, just glad that her and Santana were speaking again. She went through all the contacts on her new phone, laughing at some of the pictures and nicknames Santana had assigned to some of them: Rachel was 'Barbra', Quinn was 'baby momma', Sam was 'vagina lips', Mercedes was 'wheezy', Rory was 'leprechaun', Finn was 'man boobs', Artie was 'cripple pants' etc.

Brittany shook her head as she came to Santana's contact profile. She was just 'Santana'. Brittany smirked; maybe she should come up with a nickname for her. Brittany's heart stopped a little when she enlarged the contact photo of Santana. It was a simple picture of Santana facing the camera, blowing a kiss through the air at the screen toward her. The blonde grinned down at her phone; she figured no one else had this kind of picture of Santana but her.

Come later at lunch during one of their many cheerio routines Sue bellowed at them to take a five minute breather, Brittany stretched her legs out, thankful for the break. This heat was ridiculous, she loved the summer but to he honest she was thankful fall was approaching, when hopefully it would be a little milder. It seemed the weekends rain was just a fluke. She felt she was dying, once again running on empty. She was thankful she was at the top of the pyramid today because she's not sure whither or not she could hold the weight of anything right now, let alone a person or several.

Brittany watched as the rest of the cheerio's went to the bleachers to drink their special Sue Sylvester protein shakes. Brittany winced but felt her stomach rumble. She felt hot and weak, like she was about to pass out.

"Hey" came a soft voice.

Brittany spun around, enjoying the gentle wind hitting the back of her neck. Quinn was standing hand-on-hips looking slightly breathless.

"Hey" Brittany smiled back.

"Coach doesn't let up does she?" Quinn smiled, but if faded quickly. "Are you OK? It's just lately you've been…distant"

Brittany blinked and suddenly felt guilty without really knowing why. "I...I have?"

"You have" Quinn said simply. "You've been spending a lot of time with Santana, you hardly even text me any more," she said, not angrily or bitterly, but just with a hint of sadness.

"Sorry" Brittany mumbled looking down and scuffing her sneakers over the grass. "I guess I've been preoccupied lately"

"It's OK, I just wish we could spend more time together, you know?"

Brittany blushed a little, she had no idea Quinn liked her so much. "Quinn, you're my best friend but so is Santana and-"

"You can't have two best friends" Quinn interjected, folding her arms and quirking an eyebrow.

"Sure you can" Brittany grinned.

Quinn just smiled and shook her head amused. After a moment she spoke quietly. "I really like you Brittany"

Brittany sort of froze rooted to the spot. Quinn was sounding weird, she suddenly felt really uncomfortable.

"Uh…I like you too?" Brittany offered awkwardly, not knowing what else to say.

Quinn simply clasped her hands behind her back and fluttered her eyelashes at Brittany. Again Brittany felt an indescribable feeling, Quinn was acting weird, and she didn't like it. The other girl opened her mouth to say something but Brittany interrupted.

"Santana bought me an iphone…" she said, not quite sure why she felt the need to say it.

"Yes," sighed Quinn, her hazel eyes falling to the side. "I know. She came around to my house to get my picture and phone number. I of course slammed the door in her face but she said it was for you so," Quinn trailed and gave her an odd look. "Santana's a nice person if you're lucky enough to be her friend, she's a little wary of people but if you have enough patience then…Santana's a good friend to gain but a bad friend to loose too, I know that better than anyone" she said sounding sad, she paused again and narrowed her eyes. "However, I have no idea what you've got on her to make her treat you like this"

"What I've got on her?" Brittany repeated feeling confused.

Quinn gave a light amused laugh. "Oh come on, she's not this nice to people without good reason-"

"Maybe it's because she likes me? And she's not the bad person everybody thinks she is?" Brittany snapped, feeling her blood boil a little. Was it so hard to believe a person like Santana liked Brittany? Was she that unlikable? Were they that miss-matched?

"Brittany!" came a voice suddenly from the bleachers.

Brittany raised her hand to shield the sun from her eyes and looked across toward the bleachers. Santana was standing at the side of the football field; she was motioning her hand for her to come over.

"Go on…" Quinn said flatly, giving her permission to leave. Quinn was already walking away toward the other girls before she could respond with anything. Brittany scratched her head as she walked in the opposite direction toward Santana, wondering what was going on with Quinn. She sighed; maybe she was being a terrible friend lately. She felt like her legs were about to collapse, she needed energy, she couldn't even think straight.

"Sup' legs" Santana said as she approached. The other girl was carrying a slushie and a small white bag.

"Hi" Brittany smiled weakly as she stood in front of Santana and without thinking about it reached a hand forward and gently tucked a lock of Santana's hair behind her ear.

"Sorry" she mumbled, retracting her hand.

Santana shrugged indifferently. "I brought you lunch" said holding out the bag and slushie at her.

"Really?" Brittany said, both surprised and relieved. She took them both; half tempted to just wolf the entire contents down. "Come sit with me?" she said, motioning her head toward the bleachers.

"Ok" Santana said steadily, nodding firmly, as if somehow Brittany asked a huge commitment of her.

They both sat down, the sun facing them directly from here. Brittany opened the white bag to see fresh peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cut up into triangle shapes, just the way she likes.

"I…how?" she asked confused. "The cafeteria here doesn't make p n j sandwiches, I know cause I've like asked a million times. Then the lunch lady said she'd get Figgins to suspend me if I asked again so…"

Santana gave a hearty laugh and sighed. "I went home to make them"

Brittany bit into them. "Mhmm" she hummed contently and chewed another large piece. She swallowed quickly and grinned at Santana. Normally she'd feel weird about people watching her eat, especially if they weren't eating - but it was different with Santana. Most things were.

"You did that…for me?" she asked, touched beyond belief at such a simple gesture.

Santana looked to the side at her and smiled a little then nodded modestly, looking back out at the field.

Brittany simply stared at her, lost once again in her beauty. She wanted to kiss her, to say something, oh the things she wanted to say but was afraid too. Santana's walls were hard to break through; she didn't want to scare her away for good. Santana was fragile. Frustratingly so. Brittany decided to show how she felt by the only way she knew how, the only way she knew Santana would appreciate.

"So I was thinking…" Brittany began, taking a sip of her slushy.

"Oh? Now I'm scared" Santana smirked playfully.

Brittany rolled her eyes and continued. "I was thinking maybe…I could come over to yours, tonight?" she asked, suddenly feeling nervous.

"Oh, yeah sure" Santana shrugged and looked back out to the field where the cheerios were now laughing and stretching.

Brittany chewed her bottom lip; she didn't think Santana caught her drift.

"No I mean like…for our arrangement" Brittany mumbled quickly before shoving the straw back into her mouth and gulping immediately.

Santana turned to face her once more, smirk in place and eyebrow arched. "Oh, you want to fuck me later?" she said boldly, brown eyes falling down to somewhere below Brittany's neck and back up in an instant.

Brittany splurted into her drink a little and coughed, the straw leaving her mouth once more. "I uh…no…that's not exactly what I-"

"What did you have in mind?" Santana asked lowly, ignoring Brittany's backpedalling.

"I uh…" Brittany stuttered and took another sip.

Santana with a smirk on her face took the cup from her, plying the straw away from her lips and set it down beside them. "Tell me…"

"Well I was thinking," Brittany paused and cleared her throat. She began fiddling with her cheerio skirt. "Something slightly different, I guess?"

"Mhmm, yeah?" Santana hummed lowly, her eyes alight. Brown orbs ran down Brittany's side as they settled on her neck, Santana's favorite go-to place. "Like what?" she smirked, making Brittany squirm under her gaze. She loved when Santana looked at her like that, all lust but genuine curiosity too, as if Brittany's actions and words in these moments where the most interesting thing in the world to her.

"Mayyybe," Brittany drawled out, feeling a smirk tug at her lips. "I can come over to yours after school and run myself a bath? Maybe you can join me? Oh and some candles too…" Brittany began muttering, rubbing her chin, getting entirely lost with the idea.

Santana sighed loudly got up and walked back down to the grass, she spun around, her eyebrow arched in amusement.

"Sounds…" Santana began, her eyes looking up and narrowing in thought. "Romantic" she finally decided upon. Her face was expressionless.

Brittany blushed. "D-does it? I didn't think so, well maybe a little…"

"I'm not really comfortable with sappy stuff like that" Santana interjected, looking obstinate as she tucked her hands into the pockets of her short leather jacket and began kicking the front row seats with her boots. "Besides," she continued as she shrugged awkwardly. "I've not really…you know…taken a bath with anyone before. Well unless you count my cousin that one time" she smirked.

Brittany giggled as she stood up and walked down to the other girl. "Well, me neither" she grinned. "Besides," Brittany continued as she slapped Santana on the arm playfully. "It's not like you have a choice Santana, our arrangement means we have sex…you didn't say anything about _how _we do it…or where for that matter…" she said, a hint of flirtatiousness in her tone.

"I…" Santana began opening her mouth, but then slowly shutting it again in defeat. The Latina rolled her eyes and outstretched her pinky toward her. "C'mon Blondie, your breaks up"

Brittany took her pinky as they slowly made their way back over the field. "I totally won this one, didn't I?" Brittany teased as their hands swung between them.

Santana sighed as she looked up to the sun, giving it a lazy smirk. She tugged at Brittany's pinky. "Get rid of the candles then we have a deal, oh and no freakin' Celine Dion music or whatever the hell else you were planning"

Brittany snorted. "Eww, Santana that's gross, although if I was gonna play music I probably would have picked something like Slayer"

"Slayer? As in the heavy metal stuff…" Santana said, her brow pinching slightly.

"Yeah, I dance to it a lot"

"You can't dance to heavy metal music," Santana argued, she seemed amused.

"Sure you can" Brittany grinned as they neared the cheerios who were assembling. "The beats fast, erratic, psychedelic…sometimes you need to keep up with something that's a different pace from you…to break out of your comfort zone, you know?" Brittany said cocking her head to the side curiously.

"I…guess…" Santana conceded slowly, and seemed to mull over Brittany's statement as if she gained something much more from it than just an opinion on music.

Brittany let go of her pinky as she seen Sue was rallying up the cheerios again. "You gonna stay and watch?" she asked, smiling.

Santana rolled her eyes. "I hate cheerios…and cheerleading…and everything about it, but for you? Sure" she said shrugging self-assuredly.

"Awesome," Brittany grinned and bounced on her feet excitedly. "Oh and don't worry, you won't be too bored, I'm at the top of the pyramid today so…if you look real close you might be able to see up my cheer skirt" the blonde winked.

Santana gave her a broad smirk. "Ain't nothing up there but spanks though" she shrugged.

"I might push them to the side…just for you" Brittany said lowly, batting her lashes at the Latina.

Santana's eyebrows arched as she stepped a little closer. "You've got a dirty little mind, don't you?" she asked, looking turned on and amused all at the same time.

"I-I…not really, not usually…it's just you" Brittany blurted out, her mind going blank as Santana chewed her large bottom lip, brown eyes roaming over Brittany's body, eventually landing on her lips.

"Uh huh," Santana said lowly, unconvinced. "C'mon Blondie, you better get back to it" she said nudging her chin towards Sue.

"Right" Brittany nodded and turned to leave when a warm hand clasped around her wrist.

"Oh and Britt?"

"Yeah?" Brittany replied looking down at a tanned hand embraced around her pale wrist.

"Don't _actually_ try to flash me" Santana grinned, letting go. "Besides, what's the point? I can see you…have you…whenever I want"

Brittany gulped and nodded vaguely, although she was sure Santana never even asked her a question.

"Run along…" Santana smirked.

Brittany just gave a small, bashful smile and ran back toward the cheerios, cursing herself at how tongue-tied Santana made her sometimes.

Practice went on for twenty more minutes, and ended in their usual pyramid formation. Brittany was at the very top, with two girls under her (one of which was Quinn), and three under them etc. She was quite high up so she felt dizzy looking down, yet if she looked forward the sun was glaring in her eyes causing her to loose balance slightly. She felt her knee's wobble but regained her posture.

"Alright ladies!" Sue blasted at them through her megaphone. "I want you to maintain that structure for 10 minutes straight, and if any of you so much as move a muscle or breath in the wrong direction, you're off the squad!" she finished and headed toward the bleachers. She didn't even bother to look up to watch them as she flipped through several notepads.

Brittany sighed slightly and chanced moving – she quickly wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand, and darted it back to its original position.

"Why the hell are _you _at the top today, anyway?" spat a voice in her direction from below her. She recognized it as Claire, a random cheerio who Quinn once introduced to her.

"Dunno" Brittany shrugged, keeping her eyes on Sue. She really didn't feel like talking right now. Keeping balance up here was difficult.

"And like seriously, why do you walk about holding that freaks pinky?" Claire continued as Brittany looked across at Santana who was sunbathing but looking entirely bored. "It's gross, she'll probably kill you or something, or worse…rape you"

The other girls beneath her started snickering, causing their shoulders to move. Brittany felt their tremors under her feet.

"She's a lesbian right?" came another voice. Brittany didn't recognize it. "Got to admit, she's pretty, I wouldn't kick her out of bed" some girl snorted.

"Eww" came another voice.

Again they roared into a louder, mocking laughter, and Brittany felt the foundations of their pyramid shake beneath her.

"You guys quit laughing! You're making it hard for me to stand up here" Brittany snarled down at them, feeling anger churn in her stomach. Quinn was their leader, why wasn't she saying anything? Why wasn't she telling them to shut up? Brittany was tempted to press her foot down on the other blonde's shoulder hard but resisted.

"Or is that what it is Brittany?" came Claire's voice again, her tone laced with disdain. "She turned you into a dyke or something? I heard she can control people's minds after all. Then again you're probably too dumb to tell the difference between a boy and girl, right? I mean, do you even know about the birds and the bee's?" she laughed loudly.

Some girls laughed and other girls fell silent.

Brittany froze. Why were they suddenly being mean to her? She had been nice to them since she joined cheerios. She felt sick. It was too warm and she couldn't stand up here listening to this for much longer.

"Shut up" Brittany mumbled, not really knowing what else to say.

Again a few laughs came from below her.

It was one movement too much for Brittany and she found herself quickly losing balance. She dipped forward a little and Quinn seemed to notice so quickly latched and pulled at Brittany's ankle to stand her upright. It worked, except she came up too fast and was now sloping backwards. Before she knew it she was tumbling backwards, the wind rushing and whizzing by her ears.

Her back and side collided with the grassy earth below with a loud thud and crack. She opened her mouth to scream at the sudden surge of pain but nothing came out but a suppressed gripe from the back of her throat. She heard a stampede of footsteps and chatter, a few screams and gasps but she wasn't really taking any of it in. Her vision was blurry; she felt bodies surround her, their voices murmuring. She couldn't focus on anything else but the pain. Then, all in an instant it was gone and replaced with an odd, creeping numb sensation.

"Stand back, god damn it, let her fucking breathe" snarled a voice coming closer. She could hear the anger bubble from it. It was Santana. "Call an ambulance" she called out to the side.

An Ambulance? Brittany felt fine now. Mostly.

"I'm already on it" came Sue's voice.

Brittany was lying on her side, but she felt numb, she knew something was wrong because she was about to stand and tell them it was just a fall, that everything was OK – only to realize she couldn't move at all. She couldn't even move her neck down to see the rest of her body; she wasn't even entirely sure where the rest of her limbs were. Breathing felt sore, but everything else was numb. Her vision became less blurry and all she could see where a few strands of grass and somebody kneeling down in front of her. It was Santana. Brittany looked up, her mind and eyes ignoring the glaring sun, ignoring the blurry faces in the distance behind the other girl and simply rested on Santana's face.

"San," Brittany groused in surprise and worry. "You're…crying…"

It was true. Tears were running silently down the other girls face, slowly sliding down her cheeks.

"I am?" Santana croaked, shooting her a wry smile through the tears. She raised a shaky hand and wiped under her eyes harshly. "You scared me for a second there, that's all" she said quietly.

Brittany had never seen her look this upset and out of sorts - it scared her.

"How bad is it? Is there blood? Because you know I can't look at that-"

"No, no…no blood" Santana reassured her, wiping away more tears as brown eyes flicked down to somewhere below Brittany's neck. Brittany didn't know, she couldn't see or feel anything. "You might have broken something, I don't know" Santana said, her voice panicked, her head shaking, her face tear-stained.

"Hey," Brittany whispered quietly. She felt really drowsy all of a sudden as her eyelids fell shut.

She felt a warm palm pat her cheek gently. Santana.

"Hey, hey…stay with me" Santana said urgently, coaxing her back into consciousness. "Just keep talking, OK Britt?" she said, her voice wavering.

Brittany nodded meekly.

"Might have to do a rain check on that Celine Dion bath," Brittany croaked out, feeling a faint smile ply her own lips.

Santana blurted out a sad laugh and just nodded.

"A-am I hurting you?" Santana asked.

Brittany frowned. She didn't understand. "What do you mean?" she managed out.

"Your hand, I'm holding it, just tell me if it's bothering you"

"Santana I…" Brittany trailed and felt the blood drain from her face as realization washed over her. "I can't feel it…I don't feel tingles or anything…"

"Tingles?" Santana frowned. "Anyway, don't worry Britt," Santana continued as she moved her hand and began stroking Brittany's forehead gently. Brittany breathed out in relief. She felt this. "I'm sure your body is just in shock…don't worry…you've probably just broken an arm or something…that'll be it…" Santana said and fell silent.

Brittany felt sick.

Drowsiness swept over her once more, and she was not sure whither she could keep talking or not. She looked up into brown eyes that were staring down into blue. Santana's brow was creased with worry, her face wet from tears, but her eyes were alight, shining almost – filled with sadness but most of all reassurance and something else she couldn't quite place. Brittany didn't feel so scared anymore.

"Santana…?" Brittany spoke softly.

"Yeah?"

"Don't look a me like that," she said, feeling a smile tug her lips.

"Like what?" Santana asked quietly, her frown deepening.

Brittany swallowed audibly as her blue eyes locked once more with deep brown. "Like I'm your everything"

The last thing Brittany remembers was a small sniff and another tear spilling from those enigmatic brown eyes before darkness consumed her.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the very, very long wait. I got flu over the summer and it put me in a total rut, writers block and everything. I never imagined the time between two chapters would be so long, but thankfully I think I'm over the worst of it now. Thanks for all the messages but I'm hardly on this site any more, but i've made a Tumblr ( littlenormandy dot tumblr dot com - cause Tumblr is being stupid about links), so feel free to talk to me or ask any questions there.** **I'll put it on my profile page as well. Anyway enjoy! The next update shall be sometime next week!**_  
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_Beep…beep…beep…beep…_

The noise was loud and persistent, like an alarm clock trying to wake her from her slumber. Brittany thought about rolling over and hitting it to make it stop so she could sleep a little longer but then she heard hushed voices, whispering around her and the beeping was still going on. Why weren't the people shutting off her alarm clock? Why were there people in her room anyway? Then it clicked. She wasn't home. The air wasn't familiar. Her eyelids felt heavy; she wondered if she could even open her eyes, part of her was scared too. Had aliens abducted her? Were they experimenting on her? That would be pretty awesome Brittany thought. She had always secretly hoped she'd be chosen. She tried to raise her right arm but only managed to lift her fingers feebly.

"I come in peace," she mumbled groggily, opening her eyes slowly as her surroundings blurred.

Brittany's blonde brow furrowed in confusion as she heard murmurs and low, stifled laughing. They didn't _sound _like aliens. Shapes and contours began to materialize into faces as she blinked away her grogginess. There, staring back at her were half a dozen faces. She was in hospital, lying slightly upright on bed. She realized the beeping had been one of those machines they use somewhere to her left. She was awake, yet still felt drowsy, seeing but not really seeing. She shook her head trying to clear some of the fuzziness.

"Hey honey, are you OK?" came a voice she knew belonged to her father.

His face formed in front of her; he was sitting to her left on a chair closest to her. Brittany felt her eyebrows rise in surprise, she knew someone had been there but she felt as if he had just sprang out of nowhere and she was a little taken aback.

"Hi" Brittany said simply as she looked around at all the other faces. As soon as she spoke she seen their faces relax with relief slightly.

Her mom was sitting next to her dad, and then at the end of the bed stood Rachel, chewing her fingernails with a very worried expression. Over to the right side of her bed Quinn was sitting closest to her, and behind her sat Artie from glee club in his wheelchair. The person she most wanted to see wasn't here it seemed.

She couldn't have been out for long because Quinn was still in her cheerios uniform and Rachel was still wearing the same thing she was earlier. Teal-colored curtains were pulled all the way around her bed to give her privacy, but she knew she was in a hospital ward. She also knew it was night time since the lamp on her bedside table was on and no natural light seemed to be coming through from outside the thin veil of the curtain. She tried to remember how she got here. She was at school and…and…

All in an instant, everything came flooding back to her. Cheer practice, Quinn, Santana, her fall, the pain, and the numbness.

"Quick, take my hand" Brittany said to Quinn, feeling panic bubble in the pit of her stomach.

"Uh I-" Quinn paused looking confused and shot Brittany's parents a frown.

"Just do it" Brittany said quickly.

Quinn lay her own palm on top of Brittany's upturned one. Quinn's hand was soft and warm but something wasn't right. There was a tingly sensation. Not Santana-tingly but it felt like pins and needles, like it was someone else's hand and not her own. The only sensation Brittany could liken it to was like she had lay on her arm long enough it got limp and fell asleep. It felt like that.

She grabbed Quinns hand and took it up to her face, stroking her own cheek with the back of the others blonde hand. It had been more of an effort than she had anticipated, Quinn's arm felt really heavy. Quinn looked embarrassed and bemused.

"Feels normal here" Brittany mumbled, frowning.

Metal clanging came from the metal hoops at the top of the curtains as somebody pulled an opening and slipped in, closing the gap behind them.

Santana had come in and crossed her arms, standing next to Rachel at the end of the bed. She looked worn and tired, although Brittany wasn't sure why. Santana frowned between Quinn and Brittany who still had her hand pressing Quinn's against her face and all in an instant she dropped it. Quinn retracted her arm and sat back on her chair looking uncomfortable.

"Hi" Brittany said, relief filling her voice as she felt her lips growing into a lazy smile that she suddenly found the energy to form.

"Hey" Santana said softly shooting her a quick smile and a small shy wave, which died almost as soon as it began.

Brittany giggled at how un-Santana like it all was. She then winced a little when she felt a stabbing pain in her ribcage.

Nobody else seemed to find it funny though as the enclosed space fell into an awkward silence as the rest of the group simply stared between Brittany then Santana, almost like there was a chemistry lingering in the air between the two that everybody could physically see.

Brittany chewed her lip and wondered if she were that obvious. Sometimes she thought she was attached to Santana, like an invisible string that Santana wasn't even aware of, and wherever Santana went she just got tugged along for the ride. Brittany was instantly self-conscious of how she looked, and she suddenly realized her hair was down and wavy. Somebody must have taken her cheerio ponytail out. She probably looked awful. Even for someone in hospital.

"Uh," Santana began, killing the silence as she (to Brittany's surprise) spoke to her dad. "Docs doing his rounds now, he should be along shortly."

"OK, thank you Santana" he said kindly, turning back to Brittany with a concerned look on his face.

Brittany just frowned. "You two know each other?"

"Well I know she was your friend helping you with Spanish kiddo," said her Dad smiling at Santana and back at Brittany, "but after today she'll always be the Godsend that saved my only daughters life" he said, the smallest of tears brimming the corner of his eyes. Which was highly unusual. Brittany's dad wore his heart on his sleeve but she had almost never seen him cry before.

Brittany looked to Santana who just shrugged and suddenly found her feet more interesting to look at.

"Saved my…life?" Brittany repeated feeling confused. She didn't understand, all she remembered was falling and Santana being there, but then everything went black.

"She was amazing" Rachel suddenly spoke and smiled looking awestruck toward Santana and back at Brittany. "I couldn't even look, but she just did it, if anything I feel slightly ashamed for being so useless…this day will not look good on my memoirs that's for sure" Rachel sulked and started twiddling the ends of her hair looking somewhat guilty.

Brittany's thought process had always been erratic at best, but she didn't understand what on earth they were talking about at all.

"Santana?" Brittany asked for an explanation. The other girl was still standing at the bottom of her bed looking at her feet. She was too far away for Brittany's liking.

They were interrupted when a middle-aged African American man came in, wearing a long white coat, clipboard in hand.

"Ah!" he bellowed loudly. He smiled. Brittany already liked him because he had a kind smile. "Somebody's popular," he smiled looking at Brittany then glancing around the room. "Well, we did tests on you while you were unconscious, and I have good and bad news."

The room was extra quiet now, like everybody had inhaled and held their breath.

"Mostly good news though" he said reassuringly. "Forgive my manors, I'm Dr. West," he said, walking forward and extending a hand to Brittany. Brittany shook it. Touching things still felt weird. Pins and needles got worse when she touched things. Everything was happening too fast, she almost didn't want to hear what he was about to say, and she really wanted to talk to Santana.

"Please, can I talk to my friend?" Brittany asked quietly before she could stop herself. She felt embarrassed as the doctor looked around and to her parents. "I want to talk to Santana for a minute," she said, not daring to look the Latina's way. "Alone," she clarified firmly.

"Britt honey, are you OK?" her dad asked, his hand gripping the side of the bed.

"Yeah I'm fine, I just really want to talk to Santana," she said once again. She closed her eyes and hoped people couldn't see how she felt. Her cheeks were surely red.

"That's OK" came the Doctors voice and Brittany opened her eyes in relief and looked up at him. "If you'd like Miss pierce, I can take your parents to my office and discuss your condition there and where we should go from there in terms of your aftercare, and then I'll come back in a few minutes and tell you the same thing?"

Brittany felt her whole body stiffen. Condition? Aftercare? What did that mean? Oh god. She felt sick. Really sick all of a sudden and maybe she was actually going to throw up. She looked to the bottom of the bed when she seen Santana had taken a quick step forward, almost as if she knew, instinctively. Brittany took a deep gulp of air, closed her eyes once more and slowly breathed out through her mouth. That seemed to momentarily settle her stomach.

"Uhm yeah that's fine," she mumbled. She really wanted to talk to Santana and she wasn't even sure why. Honestly, she felt like just hugging Santana and crying till she fell asleep again. She was exhausted, despite just being waked.

"So I have your consent to do so?" asked once more.

Brittany nodded meekly, just wishing everyone but Santana would leave. She trusted her Dad though; maybe it would be safer if he found out first. Whatever it was.

"OK, if you'll come this way Mr and Mrs. Pierce" he said motioning with his arm. Her Mom and Dad got up; her dad leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead, which made her relax a whole lot more.

"Don't you worry, everything's going to be fine, we'll be right back," he whispered to her.

"Come on James, she'll be fine" came her mothers voice shortly.

"We should head down to the cafeteria, I guess?" Artie suddenly spoke, although it sounded like more of a suggestion.

"Oh! Yes!" Rachel exclaimed pointing at him. "Great idea, it's getting late and I need my nightly tea to soothe my vocal chords," she stated matter-of-factly. "Would you like to join us Quinn?" she added uncertainly.

Quinn looked inquisitively between Santana and Brittany then turned to face Rachel, her face expressionless. Now there was a group of people Brittany never thought would speak to each other.

"I guess so," Quinn said coolly as she got up from the chair, gave a small nod to Brittany and left with the other two.

As soon as they were out of sight, Brittany immediately tried to get up, it was then she realized she had several tubes going into her, she also had a plastic thing clasped on the end of her finger, she had no idea what it was. As she got up she felt her spine burn.

"Ow" she winced, sitting upright.

"Hey, careful" Santana said quickly as she came forward and sat on the edge of the bed, the denim of her skirt riding up a little. Santana placed a hand on Brittany's bicep and squeezed gently. "You OK? What hurts?" she asked, her eyes darting all over Brittany's body curiously.

Brittany pouted her lips with her head low and looked up through her lashes at Santana. She looked really tired, still beautiful as ever though. "My back," Brittany mumbled. "It kinda burns and my arms feel weird, like they're asleep and I'm pretty sure my left leg feels the same way," she said trying to shift said leg to give more room for the other girl.

Santana studied her face for a moment. "I'm sure everything will be fine"

"But you don't know that" Brittany argued quickly. They both fell into a brief silence, simply looking into each other's eyes and looking away again. They were rather close with Santana on the bed and Brittany sitting up like this. "Uhm, what did they mean?" Brittany whispered, feeling the urge to speak softly now that Santana was closer.

Santana raised an eyebrow awaiting clarification.

"Before…they were talking, they said you saved my life, but I don't remember, what happened?"

"Oh, yeah well sort of, I suppose" Santana whispered back. The other girl was quiet too and suddenly looked a little paler.

"What happened?" Brittany asked again.

"You fell and uh-"

"I remember that part," Brittany said quickly, she then chewed on her lower lip before continuing. "All I remember is everything going dark…when you were…upset" she whispered.

Santana pursed her lips and looked away to the beeping machine at the side, she chose to speak to that instead.

"Yeah," she nodded "well Sue gave me her phone to speak to the operator and she headed back toward the school to get the nurse. Everything was fine after you passed out to be honest, you almost looked asleep…" Santana said rather wistfully before smiling a little. It quickly faded when her eyes went back to meet with blue. "But uh," she continued and began shaking her head looking down at the bed sheets "something started happening, your breathing got…weird…like it was really heavy…then your face was changing color and…and I…I" Santana trailed and was shaking her head, she looked up and Brittany could tell she was reliving the experience. Santana's eyes looked red, almost as if she was about to cry.

Brittany reached over and placed her hand on top of Santana's that were resting on her lap. She exhaled in relief a little as despite the numbness, Santana still tingled and buzzed the same as ever. She was so magical and she didn't even realize it.

"I told the operator what was happening to you" Santana continued, looking back down and speaking to Brittany's hand over the back of her own. "She said it sounded like tension…something…a long word…I can't remember. I didn't understand so she said it sounded like your lung had collapsed."

Brittany subconsciously held her breath.

"She said I'd have to wait till medical professionals got there, but I got mad…typical" Santana said, smirking feebly and rolling her eyes at herself. "You were…" Santana paused, wafting her other hand in front of her face in demonstration "turning purple…I knew…I just _knew _you were dying" Santana paused sucking her bottom lip into her mouth. "You were slipping away from me Britt," she added quietly.

Brittany's heart was hammering in her throat, although she wasn't sure if it was the horror of the story of what happened to her, how close she apparently was to death, or simply the way Santana was speaking to her with such worry and…love? No, it couldn't be. Santana didn't love Brittany, not the way she loved her. So much.

"Uh, anyways" Santana continued. "She told me there was a last resort thing I could do but it was dangerous and I would have to follow her instructions directly. She asked if there was a writing pen nearby so I told Rachel to go get one, cause coach was using one earlier. Then she told me to uh…take your top off, which I couldn't cause I'd have to move you to take that damn cheerio uniform off from your head, so I just ripped it open…which uh…wanky" Santana smirked.

Brittany giggled and chewed her bottom lip.

"Damn it was hard though, those things are like made of steel" Santana joked. "Anyway from your breast bone down, she told me to count to your third rib, then in the space between your second and third…she told me to use the tube of the pen and basically uh…stab you there"

Brittany's eyebrows rose.

"I tried but fuck…it wasn't going through, I think I wasn't trying hard enough in case I hurt you so I just closed my eyes, thought about everything that ever pissed me off and rammed that shit into you" Santana nodded her head proudly and chuckled.

Brittany's opened her mouth in awe and smiled. "Oh my god…" she breathed.

"Yeah…" Santana agreed, nodding. "Anyways, I was half expecting all this blood to come out but nope, all this air was rushing it's way out the pen tube and the color in your face was starting to come back so…"

"You saved my life." Brittany stated, simply in awe.

"Yeah well," Santana shrugged humbly. "I wasn't gonna let you die or anything. I could have easily missed and killed you."

They both fell silent for a moment, no doubt going over that scenario. Brittany shuddered.

"Anyways yeah," Santana continued, seeing Brittany's discomfort. "I had to hold the pen and put my hand over the hole when you breathed out and take it away when you where inhaling, I think I was essentially breathing for you…it was scary…but I mostly felt relieved"

"You saved my life" the words tumbled out of Brittany's mouth yet again. "I don't know what to say…" she lied. She knew exactly what she wanted to say. That she had never loved Santana more than she does right now but she settles for "Thank you, I mean it, from the bottom of my heart thank you" Brittany says sincerely and wraps her arms around Santana's neck, bringing her in for a hug.

"Oh..uh…well," Santana stutters slightly, and slowly puts her arms around Brittany's waist in response. "You're welcome"

Santana pulled away quickly when Doctor West suddenly came back in. She shifted back in the bed slightly as the doctor came up to the side of her bed. Brittany suddenly felt sick again.

"So, let's get down to business, shall we?" he said smiling reassuringly at her. It couldn't be that bad, if he was smiling right? "Quite a nasty fall you had miss Pierce"

Brittany just nodded, anxiously waiting what was coming next.

"Should we speak alone or…?" he asked glancing at Santana then back at Brittany.

"No she can stay, anything you say to me can be said in front of Santana" Brittany says firmly.

It makes the sides of Santana's lips curl into a small smile.

"OK well, when you fell your angle and impact with the ground was rather violent, or forceful. Basically, considering the height you fell from the momentum and weight of you, essentially your fall was on par with a full force collision of sorts."

Brittany nodded again, even though she wasn't really sure she understood.

"You landed on your side and part of your back which caused complex problems in both area's, namely you have broken two ribs which as I understand at the scene caused tension pneumothorax."

Both Santana and Brittany blinked at each other confused.

"Which is just a fancy name for a collapsed lung" he clarified. "That was stupidly dealt with at the scene," he said giving a humorous but disapproving look to Santana.

"But she saved my life" Brittany argued, feeling the need to defend her.

"Yes" he conceded. "But as a doctor I could never condone a non-medical professional decompressing a collapsed lung. Regardless you're alive and that's all that matters," he said giving a grave smile to both of them.

"However", he continued scratching the tip of his nose. "Your ribs will have to heal as well as recover from a collapsed lung, which typically takes around 12-14 weeks, although it varies from person to person. You'll be on standard painkillers to take away the slight pain when you inhale, more than likely ibuprofen for that, if that doesn't help your doctor can proscribe you something stronger. You may have trouble breathing doing certain things, and you also may have trouble lying down so I recommend propping pillows underneath you and sleeping slightly raised at night" he motioned with his hand.

Brittany nodded again, and she had no idea why she kept doing it, but she did. Was she even taking any of this in?

"However the trauma to your spinal chord is a more pressing matter. You are essentially, partially at least, paralyzed in places."

Brittany's eye's widened. "What? But I feel fine" she lied quickly.

"Don't panic" he raised his hand and looked almost serenely calm. Santana looked even whiter.

"It's just temporary, you have what we call Neurapraxia, which is essentially the least threatening form of nerve damage and in most cases is fully recovered from. It's common among high-collision sports."

Brittany let out a breath she wasn't even aware she was holding.

"Recovery time is usually 6 to 9 weeks with help of anti-depressants and physical therapy, which we will provide, but namely plenty and plenty of rest. Although it would be helpful to know where exactly your nerve damage is, the spine is connected to many places" he smiled.

"Are…are you asking me?" Brittany inquired.

"Mhmm-mmm" he nodded. "You can often tell with area's, you may have stinging or burning sensations, or no sensations at all, just numbness"

"My hands, my arms," Brittany admittedly quickly. "Also one of my legs I think, and my back is burning a little but I dunno if that's just pain."

"OK" he nodded. "Well physical therapy will help you build back up the strength in those area's as well as medication. With Neurapraxia you basically have a temporary loss of motor and sensory functions, so getting up too quickly or running or overexerting yourself in any way will do more harm than good and prolong recovery time. Also, if your leg muscles feels too weak I highly recommend using crutches for a few weeks, it would be beneficial."

"But…but I'm a cheerleader" Brittany panicked. Her heart sank and she didn't know why. She basically just got told she was going to make a full recovery yet…

"So I won't be able to dance or cheer or…"

"The fact that you can probably walk is reason enough to be pleased, you will more than likely be able to do the things you usually do…eventually…but it will take a while of rest, physical therapy and recovery before that can happen."

Santana had begun to ask him questions but their voices sounded far away. She shouldn't be this upset considering it's temporary, but weeks if not months without dancing or running…what was she supposed to do in Glee club once they joined officially? She isn't a strong singer. She'd have to quit cheerios, the only thing she was truly good at, that she excelled at. To add salt in the wound she might have to use crutches and walk around like some sort of invalid. What was she even supposed to do with her life now? She felt like crying.

"I want to go back to sleep now" she said monotonously. Santana and the doctor exchanged worried looks.

"Please, just leave me alone"

If it hadn't been for the medication and how exhausted she was, she knew she wouldn't have slept at all, but luckily that night she did, she opened her eyes sometime afterward and Santana was gone, her Dad was back and had fallen asleep on the chair beside her. She relaxed closing her eyes quickly and was out yet again.

The following day, Santana was likely at school and her mum and dad at work, so she was alone in hospital and bored out of her mind. In fact she still felt anger and sadness from last night. She was told she could go home whenever she felt up to it but nobody would be here to collect her till later. It turned out she could walk, barely. She hated to admit it but using the crutches to walk from one end of the room to the other was much easier than simply walking, her legs felt like led. She could walk without them but it exhausted her and she was much slower.

After god knows how many hours lying dozing in and out of sleep, the doctor came up to her bed.

"You have a visitor" he informed her and walked away. Who could it be?

Brittany smiled when she seen Santana come in and made her way to her bed.

"What are you doing here, shouldn't you be at school?" Brittany asked in a mock-chastising voice.

"Yes ma'am" Santana smirked and shrugged, it made Brittany's tummy flip. "Buuutt, I told miss Pillsbury a real rob story about my best friend in hospital and how I was reliving the incident and that I sorta saved your life cause you know, I'm awesome" she said giving a cocky tilt of her head "and that missing my last class wouldn't cause any harm so…I mean the woman practically had an orgasm, she thought I was finally opening up to her" Santana smirked.

"Pfft, I should tell her that's never going to happen" Brittany said bitterly. Her eyes bulged; she didn't mean to say that. "Sorry," she said quickly. "I've been in a bad mood all day and-"

Santana shrugged apparently thinking nothing of it and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Rachel wants to know if you'll come to the movies later, you know…take your mind off things…" Santana said quietly.

Brittany was secretly glad, she was looking forward to getting out and just pretend that none of this happened.

"Are you going?" Brittany asked.

Santana looked up in thought. "Mhmm, only if you are" she smiled.

"Awesome, then of course I'll come" Brittany smiled back. She suddenly yawned and felt another wave of tiredness wash over her.

"You want to go to sleep?" Santana asked, gently putting her hand over Brittany's.

Brittany smiled faintly and nodded.

"But please don't leave…OK?"

Santana chuckled a little. "OK" she nodded.

Brittany's Dad took her home that night; as soon as she got in she literally hopped up the stairs and collapsed onto her bed, falling asleep instantly with Lord Tubbington at her side and crutches resting against the side of her bed.

Getting a shower was draining, her dad insisted on keeping the bathroom door open incase she fell.

"You shouldn't be going out with your friends so soon, you're only just back from hospital"

For the first time ever, she ignored him.

Upon hearing the doorbell that night, Brittany hobbled to her front door, not before giving herself the onceover. Cute tank top that shows just enough side-boob, simple jean shorts with leggings and converses. Casual. This wasn't a date or anything. Then why was she so nervous?

"Hey" smiled Brittany as she opened the door. Santana was dressed uncharacteristically casual, not in her usual just-stepped-out-a-club look. Simple jeans and a red flannel top that was tied up at her waist, revealing a little of her abs, was she even wearing anything under that?

"Hey" Santana smiled back and leaned against the door frame, clasping her hands in front of her. "Sooo," she dragged out. "Are you ready?"

Brittany just nodded shyly and grinned at her. Santana just made her so happy, she momentarily forgot about everything that had happened.

Santana's smile changed into a smirk. "You look cute by the way"

"So do you" Brittany grinned back, bouncing impatiently on her feet.

Santana just shrugged a shoulder as if to say _obviously_. "Don't you need your crutches?" she suddenly asked, a crease in her brow.

Brittany sighed a little feeling frustrated. It had only been a day but already she was sick of being reminded of her…current condition.

"No it's fine, I can walk you know" Brittany mumbled miserably.

Santana folded her arms, clearly displeased. "You'll recover faster if you use your crutches and do your exercises you know"

"I know" Brittany snapped a little, rolling her eyes. "Shut the door" she mumbled, as she brushed past Santana unable to look at her annoyed expression for long. She started walking toward Santana's car but her walking was weirdly sluggish. She hated this.

She heard Santana sigh as she came to a halt in front of her. "You want me to go inside and get your crutches?"

"No" Brittany sighed pleadingly. "I…I just don't want to use them tonight, OK? I want to feel normal for a moment, is that too much to ask?"

Santana's eyes narrowed as she considered Brittany's words. "Yeah…it is, but whatever, I'll be your crutch if you're so desperately in denial about needing your own" she said with bravado as she slipped her hand into Brittany's, quickly interlinking their fingers.

Brittany looked down stunned at the small and warm hand now linked with her own.

"Are you coming or are you going to stand there gawking all night?" Santana asked, her eyebrows arched. "C'mon stumbles" she smirked, shaking the blondes hand in her own as they walked toward the car together, albeit at a slower pace.

The ride over to the cinema consisted mostly of Santana telling Brittany she should have brought her crutches. Brittany thought she was just nagging. They found a parking spot and Santana got out and went round to the passenger side to open the door for Brittany. Brittany smiled a little as Santana helped her up out of the car. She shut the door behind her and to her surprise found that Santana held her hand again. The blonde began to feel excited; Santana Lopez was holding her hand, in public. Not pinky-linking but full on hand holding. She grinned down at their hands intertwined so perfectly together. Although this was only because Santana wanted to keep her steady, right? She was being her crutch. It was nothing else.

Santana was looking around as they walked through the car park a little slowly; Brittany loved the way she was keeping Brittany's hand near to her side, almost as if Brittany would stray away if she didn't keep her close. She would never stray away from Santana though. She didn't know how.

"Jesus Britt, you're gripping my hand like a vice, ease up a little?" Santana smirked, casting her side-glance.

"Oh…sorry" Brittany smiled sheepishly as she realized she was gripping Santana so hard she swore she could feel the other girls pulse, despite the slight numbness. "The feeling in my hands aren't so great you know"

"Unless you're planning on giving me neura…whatever…you should relax a little" said Santana, nudging into her side playfully.

"What?" Brittany gasped slightly. "Oh no, I would never want to give you…I totally wouldn't want to, I didn't mean-"

Santana was chuckling. "Relax Britt, I was joking?" she said incredulously but with a smile. Her eyes were shining. It was infectious.

They headed up the stone steps toward the entrance. Brittany brought them to a halt with her hand still in Santana's. She dragged the other girl back a bit.

"You…you're still holding my hand" Brittany stated bluntly, looking down at their hands and quickly back up at Santana. Brown orbs flickered away for a moment but landed quickly upon her again.

"Yes captain obvious, I am" she shrugged, her face contorting into its usual nonchalance. "Is that all you wanted to say? Or can we go in now?"

"I like it…hand holding that is…" Brittany said quietly. "Don't you?" she asked curiously, cocking her head to the side.

Santana rolled her eyes and shrugged a shoulder. "Suppose, seems pointless to me. I just hope our little glee club don't get the wrong idea when we go in"

"The wrong idea…" Brittany repeated, taking a step forward closer to the Latina. "Can I ask you something? Does the wrong idea sound as wonderful to you as it does to me?"

Santana opened her mouth a little then closed it; she looked a little surprised by Brittany's forwardness. They didn't talk about feelings. They didn't talk about them. They just had an arrangement, outside of that; talking to Santana about much of anything involving herself was strictly forbidden, often met with silence. Brittany seemed to slowly be becoming the exception though.

"I…I thought we've been through this" Santana said staring sternly at Brittany. "We have a good arrangement going, I honestly don't want to have the 'what does this mean' conversation every two fucking minutes" she said as the grip on her hand became a little tighter.

"But what does it mean?" Brittany asked.

"Why do you think I have all the answers!?" Santana implored desperately, her voice raised so much so that a few passers-by looked in their direction. "Why does it have to mean anything!? Why can't we just…just…stay as we are, why are you making this so difficult?"

"_Me_ making it difficult!?" spat Brittany in disbelief. "You're like the most difficult person I've ever met!"

"Yeah well…ditto" Santana said rolling her eyes. "C'mon, we're gonna be late" she said as she tugged Brittany roughly toward the front doors.

They went in and toward the ticket line, to find that just in front of them were Artie, Sam, Mercedes and Rachel.

"Ladies" smiled Rachel as she paused, then quirked a curious eyebrow at their hands. Rachel smirked at Santana, like they were having some sort of silent discussion.

"Blondie here" said Santana tilting her head toward Brittany. "Thought it'd be a genius idea to go out without her crutches, so I'm left babysitting"

"Whatever you say Santana" sang Rachel as she twirled around and began talking to Mercedes.

"Eugh" Santana huffed. Brittany put her head down and smiled inwardly. She really liked Rachel.

"Hey guys," said Artie as he wheeled past the rest and up to them. Sam was alongside him. "They're doing marathons of all the star wars movie yo! Lasts till past midnight! It's a school night, I feel so bad ass."

"Luke…I am your father" said Sam pouting his lips in an exaggerated deep voice.

Brittany giggled. The sound for some reason made Santana grip her hand a little tighter.

"Eugh you dweebs" sighed Santana as she rolled her eyes.

"Care to join us Santana?" asked Sam, a dopey grin on his face.

To Brittany's surprise Santana smirked at him, a friendly smirk. "No thanks vagina lips, but thanks for the offer, I think the new Disney Pixar film is more up Britt's an I valley"

Brittany smiled. She was mad at her, but she was still so hot. Britts and I. She liked the sound of that.

"Hey Brittany about your accident" said Artie sympathetically, pushing his large glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Brittany chewed the inside of her cheek; she didn't want to talk about it anymore. Or be reminded.

"I was just wondering," Artie continued, shooting anxious looks at Santana for some reason. "If you ever want to talk about it, I'm here, I know what it's like, you know?"

Brittany's shoulders slumped as she gave him a small smile and nod of acknowledgement. "Thanks Artie"

"I was thinking we can talk about it, over dinner?" Artie asked, his eyebrows rose. "You know, nothing special, just benny's, Rachel works there, it's a great lil' café. Tomorrow night?"

Brittany may not have had the best feelings in her hand, but she knew Santana's grip on her hand just got ten times tighter.

"You've got Spanish lesson on Thursdays, remember Britt?" Santana says through gritted teeth.

Brittany shrugged, wanting to annoy her. "So? We could skip it for a week, right? Sure Artie, I'll come with you."

Artie looked relieved and surprised. "Awesome" he smiled. "Well I guess we better roll, enjoy your non-awesome non-star wars film" he said, waving his gloved hand and turning the wheel on his chair. Artie and Sam moved toward the shop that was selling popcorn and candy.

"Wassup with you" came Mercedes voice looking at Santana.

"Not now Wheezy" Santana snapped.

Mercedes eyebrows rose. "Girrrl, it was only a-"

"C'mon Blondie," Santana said cutting her off. "Lets go get our tickets".

As they made their way into the semi-full theatre, Santana hadn't said a word, but guided the blonde with a gentle tug of her hand, bypassing the ticket collectors and crowds and led her slowly up the steps. Santana had their popcorn in one hand and Brittany's hand in the other.

"Geez Santana, just pick a seat, its not that busy," whispered Brittany, as the room was already dark and murmuring, pre-movie trailers showing on the large screen.

Santana had decided to take them all the way to the back row that was empty apart from them. The Latina sidestepped along through seats till they were almost exactly in the middle of the row. Santana let go of the blonde's hand as she took a seat. Brittany instantly missed it but took the seat next to her. Santana shoved the adjustable armrest in-between them up and out of the way and decided to place the popcorn between them instead.

"Thanks" Brittany whispered, taking some of the popcorn and chewing it.

Ten minutes or so into the film and honestly Brittany hadn't watched a second of it. Which is surprising because it's a Disney film and those are like her_ thing_. She wasn't watching though, not unless you count watching as gazing at the reflection of the screen in Santana's dark eyes. Her neck was getting sore from staring to her side, but she couldn't help it, even in this darkness, she could still see that Santana was the brightest and most beautiful person in here.

"You're staring" Santana whispered, her lips forming a smirk as her eyes flashed to the side.

"Yeah, I am" Brittany grinned. She knew the sound of her smile must have been in her voice because Santana's smirk grew wider.

Santana took the box of popcorn that was nestled between them and shoved them in between Brittany's knees. Santana reached in and took some. Before Brittany could ask why Santana moved the popcorn, she was given her answer when the Latina shifted over till she was half on Brittany's seat and pressed herself against the blonde's side. Santana then slid her hand down Brittany's arm and slips her fingers into the spaces between Brittany's. They're holding hands again and Brittany's heart just about leaps up to her throat. Brittany swallows hard and before she can even process the sight of their hands intertwined resting on her lap, Santana's head falls and rests on her shoulder.

Brittany just about implodes because her heart is hammering and Santana is surely about to start laughing because she can hear it, but she doesn't say anything about it. In fact she doesn't say anything. There's zero space between them and Brittany has to closes her eyes as Santana's scent invades her senses, her coconut shampoo and her skin, and it's sort of making her dizzy.

Santana was holding her hand and for no other reason but to just hold it, of that Brittany was one hundred percent certain and it made her feel high.

"Mhmm" Santana hums or moans or groans, and Brittany doesn't exactly know what kind of sound it is, but all she knows now is that Santana's face is buried into her bare collar bone and her lips are resting on her skin. The mere sound of such contentment shoots to her ears and sends volts down past her stomach and then settles and burns in-between her legs.

Santana is smirking. Brittany knows, because she can feel it against her skin. This girl knows exactly what she's doing.

They sit like this for a while and Brittany's going crazy because of the way Santana's head is angled, every time she breathes, her hot damp breath breezes it's way over her skin and down the valley between her breasts. It tickles and tingles, and she's pretty sure her nipples have pebbled. She's so wet, she can feel it pooling in-between her legs and the other girl hasn't even done anything but Santana's breathing heavily against her skin and really, there's only so much self-control Brittany has when it comes to Santana.

"Santana" Brittany lets out a quiet and shaky breath.

Santana then makes the most deliciously dark giggle she's ever heard. She's doing this on purpose.

To the blonde's disappointment, Santana lets go of her hand but then she skims her hand over the material of Brittany's shorts, she's rubbing between her legs and Brittany gasps. Before she registers what's happening Santana is popping the button open on her shorts and slowly unzipping her fly.

"Ugh…what are you doing" Brittany groans.

Santana tilts her head up and dark eyes meet her own. "What does it look like?" the other girl breathes.

Brittany's other hand suddenly grips onto the other armrest tightly. Oh god. She felt like she was hanging on for her life. There were people a mere two rows in front of them; someone could easily turn their head.

Santana's hand slips under her leggings and then into her underwear.

Brittany whimpers. She's warm and wet against Santana's fingers, she just knows she's going to come undone in less than a minute. Santana seems to sense this too.

"God look at you, you're so wet" Santana half-whispers, half-kisses into the nape of her neck, and twists her body slightly so she's even further pressing into Brittany. "Say it" Santana suddenly commands, bringing her lips up to the shell of Brittany's ear. "Say nobody makes me as wet as you do Santana"

Brittany's eye's roll back in her head as the words tease her brain and Santana begins to move two fingers up and down her slit slowly, the wetness of her sex making it seamless.

"N-nobody…makes me as wet…as you do, Santana" Brittany all but stutters out, sucking in her lips to try and muffle the whimpering noises now escaping the back of her throat.

"Good girl" Santana smirks and then places a hot searing kiss just behind Brittany's ear, which apparently is one of Brittany's super sensitive areas.

Again, Brittany tries her best to swallow the noises she's making.

Santana's fingers tease her clit with perfect pressure. She makes small slow circles then eventually works her way wider, occasionally going further down and tantalizingly dipping only a fingertip in her entrance to collect the wetness there and bring it back up to swirl around her clit, which by this point was throbbing so much it almost hurt.

Brittany threw her head back and closed her eyes, trying to focus on keeping quiet but she was panting pathetically by this point and was so, so close.

"I'd love nothing more than to lap that wetness up, but," Santana breathes into her neck. "I wouldn't want to get us thrown out" she smirks again as she works her fingers faster. Brittany could feel the other girls fingers work through her folds, almost making a 'S' shape, like she was marking her.

Brittany felt her muscles tighten and she knew it was time. Her mouth fell open as she seen stars, Santana now focusing on her face as she came undone. Brittany had to clasp her other hand over her mouth to stop herself from moaning. Luckily something really funny just happened in the movie apparently, because everyone was suddenly laughing.

"Mrmmmmpphhh" Brittany groans against her hand, hoping that the laughter would be enough to cover the sound.

Brittany's breathing is heavy as she tries to come down from her high. Santana extracts her hand, tugs Brittany's zip back up and sucks her fingertips, shooting Brittany a wink and with the same hand scoops out some popcorn and chews casually as if nothing happened. Santana rests her head back down on Brittany's shoulder and the blonde still hasn't really recovered, her breathing still uneven.

"You know," Brittany whispers as she nuzzles herself into Santana, inhaling her scent on top of her head. "If you don't want me to go tomorrow with Artie, I won't" she admits quietly.

"I don't want you to go" Santana answers almost instantly back.

"Then I won't" Brittany states simply.

Santana sighs impatiently and pulls away, taking the popcorn with her. She turns her head to face Brittany.

"I don't want you to not _not _go either, so you should probably go" Santana whispers, turning back toward the screen and eating some more popcorn.

"Huh? That makes no sense," Brittany whispers at her, frowning.

Santana shrugs. "It does to me."

They spent the rest of the time watching the movie in silence; no doubt both were lost as to what it was even about, Brittany was still mulling over Santana's words, yet again trying to decipher them. Still, Brittany thought, the next time she actually wanted to go see a movie, she was definitely not sitting next to Santana.


	17. Chapter 17

"You're _not _going to school!" her father said sternly.

Brittany sighed, already set for school and had half a leg (and crutch) out the front door. She was wearing short denim shorts, a white top with a cream cardigan, as it wasn't so hot out any more.

"The doctor said you should be resting, you technically should still be in hospital" came her father's voice.

Brittany's slumped her shoulders and turned around to face him, "Look dad, yeah technically, the doctor also said I could leave whenever I felt up to it, and guess what? I'm totally up to it"

"That's not the point, it's too soon, I can't believe I'm actually arguing with you to _not go _to school, most teenagers your age wouldn't argue with not going to school, what's the real reason kiddo? Why so keen on school all of a sudden?"

Brittany just frowned at her dad. Truth is, it was Thursday. There was always lots of Santana on Thursdays. "I'm going and you can't stop me," Brittany said flatly.

"Well there's no way you'll be able to walk there"

Brittany chewed her lip. She knew that. Her arms and legs felt tired by simply getting a shower and dressed. She'd limp there if she had to though.

Her dad groaned. "_Fine_, I'll drive you"

"Thanks," Brittany smiled a little. Her dad would do anything for her really.

Brittany was later outside looking onward at McKinley, much like the first time she had came here. Except this time she was pathetically slumped over crutches, having to swing her own body weight as she moved forward sluggishly with each step. She hated this.

"Ah! Brittany, our resident disaster-attracting student" Jacob Ben Israel pounced from nowhere, shoving a tape recorder in her direction. "How are you since your fall? Is it true you'll never be the same again? Is it true you're dying? Is it true Santana Lopez made you fall with her evil glare?"

Brittany rolled her eyes but said nothing as she headed toward the front door. "Just leave me alone"

Brittany got to her lockers and detached her crutches from her forearms, leaning them against the metal as she unlocked it.

"Brittany" came a familiar delicate voice.

She looked to her left and saw Quinn in her usual cheerios attire; standing behind her was Claire, arms-folded. The two people she felt were responsible for her accident.

"We just want to say, we're really sorry for what happened" Quinn said quietly.

"Real sorry what happened" parroted Claire, with less sincerity than Quinn.

Brittany slammed her locker shut hard that the sound reverberated all around the corridor. She was mad. It was sort of funny though, this reminded her of the first time she met Santana.

"Brittany!" Quinn flinched, wide-eyed.

"I dunno if I want to talk to you right now Quinn, I'm mad at you" Brittany said monotonously.

Quinn blinked as she looked away. She looked genuinely upset.

"As for you," Brittany spat at Claire "You so much as look at me again, and I'll tell Santana Lopez the truth, that _you _were the one responsible for my fall, trust me, anybody hurts me? Santana gets mad, and I trust you hear what happens when Santana gets mad," Brittany said cockily.

"You…you wouldn't" Claire whimpered.

Brittany raised her eyebrows as if to say _'try me'_.

"Now get lost," Brittany said as Claire began to walk away. "Both of you" she clarified glaring at Quinn.

Quinn spun on her heels, eyes brimming with tears and ran away down the corridor, pushing by students worthlessly.

Brittany's heart sank a little.

She had avoided Santana's texts all day. Not because she was mad at her but because she kind of wanted to surprise her, for the other girl didn't know she would be back at school so soon. She found herself early for Spanish yet again so she stood outside the classroom. Yes, coming in today was definitely a good idea. Thursdays were everything. Santana was everything.

Santana came around the corner and Brittany sort of watched her come toward her in slow motion. She was stunning as usual, Brittany was kind of tired of thinking it, but it was never any less true. She snorted a little at the Latina's ability to pull off a white shirt and blue overalls. Brittany herself had always been told she could pull of any look, but even she probably couldn't pull off this particular one.

Santana frowned looking confused to see the blonde as she came to a halt in front of her.

"Hard day working the crops?" Brittany teased the other girl, quirking an eyebrow at her outfit.

"Oh, _ha ha_," Santana replied dryly. "What in the hell are you doing here Britt? You're supposed to be home resting? Better yet, still in the freakin' hospital" she said disapprovingly.

"I'm _fine_" Brittany insisted on what she felt like was the millionth time.

"Your accident was just two days ago, you ain't fine"

"I've had this lecture from everybody, just leave me alone, OK? I feel fine, plus I get to see you so" Brittany smirked.

Santana didn't look amused.

Spanish dragged in, listening to Mr. Shue go on endlessly about Spanish exercises. Brittany was beginning to understand key words here and there, she felt rather proud. It was all thanks to Santana though. She looked to her left at the girl, and occasionally giggled at Santana's continuous low mutters apparently correcting Mr. Shue's bad Spanish.

"You should be teaching this class," Brittany informed her as Mr. Shue began handing out textbooks.

"Mhmm," hummed Santana, her voice low and conspiratorial. "Only if we get to roleplay teacher/student, then again you know me, I'd prefer if you were the teacher" she smirked.

Brittany felt her cheeks burn as Mr. Shue got to their table and handed them two books. The blonde cleared her throat and lowered her head to conceal her blush.

"Uh, what the hell _Curls_?" Santana spat at who turned around.

"Excuse me, Santana?" he said sternly.

"I said _what the hell_, you gave Britts here a bad textbook, and me a shiny new one" she said, nodding her head at the books on the table. It was true, one was brand new and the other was worn, the text barely legible.

"Well, why don't you be kind and swap hers with yours?" he smiled assertively.

"Nuh uh, that ain't how it's gon go down" Santana began dryly. "Brittany here? Poor innocent Brittany" Santana began "just got outta hospital and let's be real - needs to be able to understand these textbooks, you don't want this shitty book do you Britt?" Santana said turning to her with a confident smirk on her face.

Brittany's cheeks felt red for an entirely different reason now; the whole class had turned around to look at the exchange. "Uh, Santana I honestly don't mind tha-"

"See? She wants the book you're holding" Santana interjected and smiled mockingly at Mr. Shue. "And Blondie wants? Blondie gets. Or are you going to deprive this temporarily disabled girl of being unable to get on with her schoolwork, hmm? It wouldn't make you look good as a teacher, right? What would that lovely doe eyed Pillsbury think too, cause let's be real here you wants to go to town on that gingerhood, and I mean that's pathetic right? I've watched as you silently eat your lunch staring afar at her for the last freakin' three years. So how about you stop being a douchebag, and live a little hmm? How abouts you give Blondie here your textbook, you take hers and go teach the class, which FYI? Your Spanish is sloppy at best, I could _technically _dump a complaint on your ass, but you know what? Auntie Tana here is about to lay some advice on you instead. Swap the textbooks, at lunch go brush your hair for a freakin' change, loose the pedophile teacher vest, go up to that ginger bambi and ask her out on a date _without _mentioning our loser glee club or your only friends in life which are legally considered minors. You feel me?"

Rachel's face mirrored the entire classes. Everybody was either trying to suppress their laughter or staring open-mouthed at Santana. Mr. Shue looked a little shell-shocked, his pale face just looking glumly at Santana.

Only Santana could sound like she insulted him while at the same time actually offering a genuine piece of advice.

Brittany was fully expecting him to yell at her or tell her to see him after school, what she wasn't expecting was what happened.

Mr. Shue swallowed, placed his book down on the table slowly and took Brittany's. He turned around and headed toward the front of the class, "OK class" he said, his voice quiet and strangled. "Page 308, no talking"

The class continued on, silently astounded.

It was their free period next and Santana and Brittany were making their way over to their usual spot underneath the bleachers. It was cold out now and Brittany wasn't sure she wanted to hang around out here when it wasn't sunny. She didn't mind though, wherever Santana went, she'd inevitably follow. Moving her body weight with her crutches was more complicated on slippery grass. She was constantly leaning forward then swinging onward. Lean. Swing. Lean. Swing.

"How you holding up Blondie?" Santana smiles a little at her, deliberately walking slowly to keep back beside Brittany.

"Fine" Brittany smiled back, "this is just going to take some getting used to," she grumbled as they finally reached the bleachers. "You know, you could have carried _me_ over for a change"

"Pftt in your dreams" Santana smirked as they neared the brown sofa.

Brittany liked to think maybe one day it could just be their sofa; this could be their place or maybe Santana's tree house could be, or her bedroom. Well, really anywhere with Santana.

"Here, let me get that" Santana said curtly as she quickly took Brittany's crutches away from her arms and set them aside. "You OK?" she asked, gently grabbing Brittany's arms and setting her down on the sofa.

Brittany tried to fight back a grin. "Santana, I can sit you know-"

"Oh yeah I know" Santana said shrugging uncomfortably. "I just want you to be OK," she mumbled looking away.

Brittany's heart spun a little underneath her skin. "Sit with me?" she smiled gently.

Santana nodded a little and sat down close next to her, the material of her overalls touching the bare skin of Brittany's legs.

Before her brain could process anything, Santana had cupped her cheeks, her hands setting Brittany's skin on fire. A shaky relieved sigh left her mouth she wasn't aware she had been keeping in. Santana's shining eyes were looking at her with such adoration. The Latina guided her closer, leaned in and pressed a soft kiss on Brittany's forehead while she tenderly stroked her cheeks with her thumbs.

Santana drew back a little, "I promise things will get better for you" she whispered.

Brittany's throat made a noise as her body just melted under the other girls touch, she limply closed the gap again and pressed a careful kiss onto Santana's lips. She smiled into the gentle kiss when Santana exhaled through her nose as soon as their lips made contact, her delicate breath tickling the contours of the blondes face.

Brittany pulled back uncertainly. "Is this OK?" she asked softly. "Can we maybe just like…kiss for a while…maybe?"

Santana studied her face still held in her hands; the pads of her thumbs caressing softly along the blondes cheekbones then down her jawline. It was sort of putting Brittany in a trance. Santana held her in the palm of her hands like she owned her, and she really could do anything she wanted. Brittany would let her do anything; she could control her entirely if she wanted to. She was completely in her hands.

Santana smiled a little and nodded before closing the gap again and planting a more forceful kiss on her lips. Brittany opened her mouth as a moan escaped her throat, but it was quickly swallowed up by Santana's mouth and tongue which had found it's way into Brittany and was now stroking Brittany's tongue slow and careful. This was so unlike their first kiss, which was frantic and heated. This was tingly and relaxing. Everything was slow.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but somewhere along the way Santana had lay down on the sofa and Brittany was lying on top of her, her tongue dipping sensually and slowly in and out of the other girls mouth. Nothing could be heard but the slight wind and occasional sigh and moan escaping both their lips. Brittany's heart was hammering loudly against her chest, she loved this, and she loved her. She wanted to do this forever. Something panged in her chest as she realized she loved Santana so much it hurt.

Brittany whimpered at the thought as Santana continued to stroke her face and dance and swirl their tongues around. Brittany reluctantly pulled away and sat up looking down at dark eyes, and bright plump red lips. Brittany ran her hands through Santana's brown locks, she loved the way Santana's hair waved out a little then curled at the ends.

"I love your hair," she spoke quietly, her voice hoarse from kissing for so long. "It's soft and dark…just like you…"

Santana smirked a little as Brittany stopped running her hands through the other girl's hair and instead started playing with the straps on her overalls. Santana was smirking and looking between her eyes and fumbling hands, as if it was the most interesting thing she could ever be watching. It made Brittany blush.

"I'll miss our lesson tonight" Santana admitted quietly, her voice sounding hoarse too.

"Yeah," Brittany said slowly feeling her stomach plummet further down her body. "I won't go if you don't want me to" she repeated.

Santana shrugged looking away to the side. "You can do whatever you want"

They suddenly heard the school bell in the distance. Had they really been out here for an hour?

"Shit," hissed Santana, as she warily got up, careful not to move Brittany too quickly. "Lost track of time" Santana nudged her playfully, retrieving her crutches again and putting them on her forearms for her.

"Santana I mean it," Brittany said adamantly. "Just say the word and I won't go"

Santana chewed her lower lip and looked down to the ground. Brittany wanted her so badly to tell her not to go, she was practically begging her.

Instead of her wish Santana merely replied with "C'mon, I'll take you to lunch"

With that they headed silently back to the school.

Later on that night, Brittany wore a simple cream shirt and skinny jeans. It was bad enough she had to take crutches with her everywhere, so she didn't think her usual attire of odd hats and t-shirts would be for the best. Her dad dropped her off at Benny's. The diner had its name up in flashing neon-red lights. It was hard to miss. Artie was already outside waiting for her.

"Hey" Brittany smiled as she approached him. It was dark and cold out. "You didn't have to wait for me out here silly"

"Oh OK, I just wanted to make sure you were coming" Artie admitted, bowing his head a little.

"Of course I was coming" Brittany said simply "now, c'mon let's eat, hope this place is as good as people say"

They entered the double door and left the cold outside. It was warm enough in here for Brittany to sigh as she walked in, wheeling Artie in front of her, she kept her own crutches wrapped around her forearms so they clattered rather loudly as they entered. Luckily there were only two other people in here, an elderly couple at the back corner eating and drinking their warm drinks. Brittany beamed around the place, now this was awesome. It really was a 50's style diner. Red and white tiled walls, littered with black and white photos of famous old singers. Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ray Charles etc. some of the photos were even signed. It was small and cozy. In the center of the diner was the service area that looked like a breakfast bar, high stool's situated around the old-fashioned metallic silver saloon. In the far corner an old but brightly lit jukebox was playing some swing music. It smelled like coffee, fries and strawberry milkshake in here.

"Woah" Brittany breathed as she walked in slowly, wheeling Artie aimlessly to the middle of the diner.

"Cool right?" Artie said, clearly hearing she was impressed. "It's not to everyone's liking but I think it's pretty dope"

"Yeah" Brittany nodded. "Uhm, there's no one here to serve us?" she asked confused.

Artie laughed. "Just ring the bell on the counter"

"Oh" Brittany realized, seeing a small round silver bell on the bar, next to the cash register. She giggled a little as she pressed it. She pressed it again and again as it made cute little ringing noises.

"Yes, yes I hear you" came a dramatic voice from the back.

Turned out that voice belonged to Rachel as she emerged and came to behind the counter.

Brittany instantly snorted seeing her attire.

There she stood in what she could only assume was a 50's inspired, bright orange waitress dress, complete with white frilly apron and a small orange hat on her head. Rachel however seemed more interested in her.

"Brittany? What are you doing here, is Santana here with y-"

Her eyes fell to somewhere behind Brittany as she seen Artie. She never finished her question.

"Hey Rach" Artie said "Y'all already know what I order so I'll have one of the usual, I'm going to get a seat Brittany, you should ask Rachel what's on the menu" he said as he wheeled toward one of the tables.

"Do you need help?" Brittany asked wondering how he would get out of his chair and onto the puffy red leather seats.

"Nope" he waved his gloved hand dismissively. "I can lift n' slide"

"Brittany, get over here," hissed Rachel in a tone that suggested she had done something wrong. Frowning, Brittany went around the bar a little and hopped up on the stool closest to Rachel.

Rachel had to tiptoe to lean over the bar. "What are you doing here?" she whispered like Brittany shouldn't be here at all.

"What? I'm with Artie, he asked me to come here. I knew you worked here but I didn't know you were working tonight" Brittany smiled.

Rachel smiled back briefly before it faded and she waved her hand dismissively as if Brittany had missed the point entirely. "Does Santana know you're here with Artie?"

"Uh…yeah? Well, she said she didn't want me to go but then said she didn't want me to not_ not _go so I dunno…" Brittany shrugged.

"So she's fine with you being here?" Rachel frowned deeply as if not quite believing the blondes words.

"Yeah I think so," Brittany whispered back. Why were they whispering anyway? Why did she even feel guilty right now? "Look Rachel, you're making me feel as if I'm cheating or something, Santana and I aren't dating and Artie's just a friend anyways so-"

"Oh Brittany," Rachel patted her arm apologetically. "I know, I know it's just…" she trailed and looked away in thought. Their eyes met and they both seemed to come to some sort of silent understanding.

"She doesn't talk about anything so," Brittany shrugged, suddenly feeling a little dejected. "Am I supposed to wait around until she finally starts talking to me? Tells me if she feels the same way I do? Feels _anything_!?"

"Oh she certainly feels a lot for you, I guarantee it" Rachel said firmly, nodding briskly.

"How am I supposed to know that if she won't talk to me, huh?" Brittany hissed, a little frustrated, more at Santana than Rachel. "Why is she like this, tell me."

Rachel opened her mouth and shut is slowly again, her eyes bouncing from side to side, indicating some sort of internal struggle. "Look, I don't want to talk about Santana behind her back like this, and frankly anything you two need to discuss, should be done between you two. Not me."

Brittany sighed. She couldn't really argue with that.

"However," Rachel continued, perhaps sensing Brittany's frustration. "It's not any one thing, it's not you either, don't take it personally, she's just…naturally…guarded I guess. I think what scares her most with you is that you could be really happy together, and that you do tend to make her happy in general."

The blonde didn't understand. "Why would that scare anyone? Isn't that supposed to be good?" Brittany asked scratching the back of her head.

"Santana," sighed Rachel dismally and looked around cautiously as if Santana herself were going to pounce out and catch them. "Santana thinks she doesn't deserve happiness. She thinks she's supposed to be alone, not lonely _per say,_ but alone. That way she's neither happy nor sad, but just being…she doesn't think she deserves anything more, she's not _used_ to anything more and frankly even if you told her she makes you the happiest person in the world, she wouldn't believe you. She thinks that lowly of herself to be honest. That self-confidence she shows on the outside? The effort she puts into her looks and her clothes and her figure? It's just a distraction really…a distraction from the fact that she may like what she see's in herself on the outside, but on the inside…she probably hates herself…"

Brittany swallowed a lump she didn't know had formed in her throat. "What am I _supposed _to do?" she asked desperately.

"Honestly? I have no idea" Rachel admitted shrugging a shoulder, as she took a towel and began cleaning some milkshake glasses behind the counter. "For what it's worth, everything's different with you, _she's_ different with you. For example? We met in this very diner back in our sophomore year? Back then she was just one of the many popular cheerios. She had been coming in, sometimes with Quinn and her friends but most of the time alone. She finally spoke to me after 6 months. She told me she had wanted to speak to me for that long but didn't really know how to approach me."

"Why did she want to speak to you?" Brittany asked, already engrossed in this story.

"It's funny" Rachel smiled. "All she wanted to do was give me a compliment," she said as she twirled on the spot slightly.

"A compliment? That's it?"

Rachel nodded. "The Glee club at the beginning of that year did a school musical where I performed Billie Holliday's 'gloomy Sunday', she just wanted to tell me that she loved my voice very much and that I had moved her to tears."

Brittany's eyebrow rose.

"What?" Rachel asked sounding offended. "I can have that affect on people you know" she beamed. "We pretty much became friends after that, she started getting bored with the friends she did have and well, I think you know the rest. She had the whole situation with Quinn, which threw her out the closet so to speak, Quinn and Puck were going through their own difficulties and as you may know her family is away a lot. She's changed over the last year, she was always standoffish but it just seems to have gotten worse. I can't even remember the last time a week that's went by where she hasn't gotten completely drunk at least once" she sighed sadly.

Brittany nodded slowly, taking this information in. All of this she already assumed, it seemed like there was no massive secret, no magical password that could be said to unlock the mystery of Santana. She'd just have to keep wading through all the barriers, without ever really knowing if she was heading toward the center of it all.

As if sensing her thoughts, Rachel spoke. "Like I said, for what it's worth…" she said leisurely. "…the fact she considers you her best friend within what, how long has it been? A month or two? It took us 6 months to talk and a further year to really become friends. I think you're special, especially to her, so don't feel too bad about things."

Brittany sighed and nodded, forcing herself to smile.

"Anyway" Rachel said brightly, trying to shift the subject. "What can I get you?"

A little while later Brittany and Artie had settled down and were eating and talking. Brittany decided to go for the burger, fries and strawberry milkshake. She had to admit; it was one of the nicest things she had ever eaten. She took some fries and dipped them into her milkshake and chewed the ends off them.

"Girrrl," Artie said sassily shooting a disgusted look "that is _nasty_"

Brittany giggled. "How come? I like fries and I like milk, so why wouldn't they taste awesome together?"

Artie merely scrunched his face up and took a bite of his own burger.

"How are you feeling?" he asked after a while.

Brittany slowed her chewing and looked at him. She knew he was talking about her condition.

"Fine, I guess," she admitted quietly. "There's a woman coming to my house tomorrow, to start my physical therapy? So, I'm guessing after a while that'll help" Brittany shrugged.

"That's good"

"Yeah, did you ever get…" Brittany stops her impending question and clatters her fork on the plate. "Of course you didn't, sorry, I'm stupid, I didn't think"

Artie laughed a little and fiddled with the side of his glasses. "It's OK, easy mistake to make"

"It really isn't" Brittany said, shaking her head. "Can I ask how you…you know…?"

"Oh," Artie realized what her question was. "We got hit by a drunk driver, my mom and I. She was fine. Me? Well you can see how things turned out there" he smiled feebly.

Brittany gave him a wry smile. "I'm so sorry" she said sincerely and leaned over, placing her hand over Artie's gloved one on the table. "You fiddle with your glasses when you get nervous you know," she added, smiling.

"I do?" he asked smiling back, his eyes moving between their hands and back up at her eyes. "How do you know?"

"I can read people," Brittany shrugged, not before adding "but not like in a creepy, psychic reading way"

Artie laughed.

Suddenly somebody barraged their way into the diner through the entrance doors, making a loud noise. Brittany had her back to it, but as soon as she heard their voice she knew exactly who it was.

"Well, well, well" came Santana's slurred voice.

Dread shot down Brittany's spine as she quickly let go of Artie's hand. She had been drinking. Her stomach was churning. Why was she here? Why did she come here when she knew she had plans?

Brittany spun back to look behind her. Santana was wearing the shortest purple dress she had ever seen; it literally just stopped at the very top of her thighs. She had a small leather jacket over it and black, knee-high velvet boots on with matching purple laces that went all the way to the top. She was staggering toward them, one hand reaching around the tables to keep her steady and the other lazily gripping a bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag. She was literally a walking drunken cliché. She looked like somebody going through a mid-life crisis…except in her late teen years…

Santana came to their table and with a clunk put the bottle down on it. She was swaying on the spot slightly and looking at Artie with an unrecognisable expression. Artie shot Brittany a confused look; Brittany skewed her mouth in reply. This was not going to end well.

Rachel came running out from the back and headed straight for Santana.

"What are you doing here Santana?" she hissed and grabbed the other girls arm. "Come over here to this table, I'll get you a coffee" trying to coax her away.

"Yeah," Brittany agreed, "You should probably get rid of this too," Brittany said as she clasped a hand around the bottle and was about to give it to Rachel when Santana's hand came at the bottle at lightning speed.

Santana glared at her, it made Brittany swallow a cold lump in her throat. It reminded Brittany of the glare she first gave her when they first met. Except this one was worse. She felt like she had just tried to take a piece of meat away from a lion.

"Or not…" Brittany said as she carefully backed her hand away from the bottle.

"S'fine" Santana slurred and waved her arm, swatting Rachel away from her. "I…I'm just here to join my bestest buddies Brittany and Artem" she said as she slumped down next to Brittany, setting her legs up under the table so her feet came beside Artie, in a way blocking his only exit. Artie shifted in his seat and looked really uncomfortable.

Brittany looked to Rachel, pleading with her eyes for help, for her to do something. Anything.

"Benny…my boss is away, it's only me on shift tonight, well until half nine" Rachel said to her quietly.

Brittany nodded a little. There was nothing they could do.

"Go away Rachel" grunted Santana as she took another swig from the bottle, clunking it back down loudly on the table.

Rachel indicated her head toward the counter, probably implying to Brittany that she would be watching from there. She nodded.

"Soooo…Artem" Santana said, folding her arms and looking across at Artie.

"It's Artie," he said quietly.

"Santana, I think you should leave, me and Artie were having our meal alone" she said, feeling anger crawl up her skin.

"Oh I see," Santana said dryly, not bothering to look at Brittany at all but instead staring across at Artie.

"You know what?" he squeaked uncomfortably. "I think I'm going to text my dad to come and get me," he said bringing his phone out his pocket.

"Yeah..I…you just go ahead and do that four eyes" Santana spat.

"I think that would be for the best," Brittany said, glaring at Santana and giving Artie an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry about this"

"It's OK, I had a nice time" he smiled weakly at her.

"Oh I'm sure you did _cheese dick_," said Santana. "Tell me Artsy, you're a guy right?" she asked, slumping back, taking out a cigarette and lighter from her leather jacket pocket and lighting it up.

"Santana!" Came Rachel's voice, her hand tapping the counter. "You can't smoke in here," she said, pointing to the no smoking sign on the wall.

"Is that right? Watch me" Santana grumbled and inhaled deeply, blowing smoke out her lips in a threatening manor directly in Artie's face. Brittany and Artie both wafted their hands in the air to disperse the cloud of smoke.

"Santana you're being really rude-" Brittany said, a feeling of dread in her stomach.

"So you can like…use your dick, right?" Santana asked brazenly, inhaling and tilting her head back, smoke protruding from her nostrils this time.

"Oh my god" said Brittany, throwing her hands over her face. This was so embarrassing.

"Uh, yeah I still have the use of my penis" Artie mumbled.

"Artie! Oh my god, you don't have to answer her, just ignore her, please," Brittany pleaded.

Santana ignored her. "Tell me something then," she said leaning forward and tapping the ashes from her cigarette all over Artie's meal.

"_Santana_" hissed Brittany angrily.

"When were you planning on fucking my girl Brittany here, mhmm?"

Brittany's heart stopped a little. Her girl?

"I uh, have no idea what you're-"

"Puh-lease, save me the act _crip_, you're a guy, all guys are the same, you think only with that little dangly piece of flesh between your legs for some reason so tells me, you've been thinking about fucking her, haven't you? Cause if you haven't then you're probably gay"

"Santana stop this please"

"Like uh…h-how would you even…I mean what the hell would you even do for foreplay? Rub your wheelchair against her!?" Santana snorted.

Artie bowed his head, embarrassed.

"Santana!" spat Brittany, hitting her on the arm.

This time she turned to Brittany. "What?" she asked shrugging nonchalantly. "I want you to be happy so I'm just making s-sure, that…uh…this guy…isn't a total pussy."

Brittany tried to steady her breathing as shame, anger and hurt washed over her. She was breathing so hard that the place where she had broken her ribs were starting to hurt.

"Oh I have a-another…wonder…ment…ing…" Santana snorted a little and threw her cigarette into Artie's fries. He stubbed out the flame with one of them. He looked very pale. "How do you take a dump? Like seriously, how do you shit? You wear a…nappy or something?"

"Santana I swear to god if you keep talking I'm going to slap you" Brittany said, hands clenched on the table.

Santana laughed mockingly. "You know," she directed at Artie and cocking her head toward Brittany. "The last time she slapped me, she fucked me right after, so y'know don't let that innocent face and those crutches fool you, she's kinky like that"

"Santana" Brittany's voice trembled, her face seething red, she wore she could feel the veins popping on her head. She felt humiliated.

"Oh right, whoops, that's supposed to be private" Santana faux whispered and threw her head back and laughed.

Brittany chanced a glance at Artie, whose eyes were popped open, looking between them.

"You two are-"

Santana cut him off "Oh and another piece of friendly advice Artic"

"Its _Artie_" he said, even someone as laid back as Artie beginning to look annoyed.

"Sure whatever, j-j-just don't wear belts around this one either, just sayin'…" she shrugged a shoulder and laughed drunkenly at her own words.

"That's it" Brittany snarled. "GET THE FUCK OUT SANTANA!" she yelled at her, pushing her arm across the table so Santana's bottle went flying and smashed somewhere in the middle of the diner floor. Rachel gasped.

Brittany was heaving in anger. She felt sick. She wasn't normally one for yelling or even swearing but…

Santana looked at her, shocked. It's almost as if she had yelled the other girl instantly into sobriety.

There was a long awkward silence as Rachel, Artie and Santana all just stared at Brittany.

"Fine" Santana said quietly, getting up from the seat. "You know what?" she said pointing and wagging her finger at the blonde. "I'm so fucking over you"

Brittany swallowed as tears stung the back of her eyes. "Fine" she said shakily.

"You can forget all about our arrangement too," she said. "Yo sabía que esto iba a pasar. Yo no puedo hacer esto" she mumbled glumly as she stumbled toward the exit and slammed the doors shut as she left, making the windows vibrate a little.

Brittany had no idea what Santana said, but it didn't matter, she just crumbled into her own arms and sobbed her eyes out. She cried so hard that she buried her face in her arms; she didn't want them to see. She felt Rachel come down beside her and her hand over her shoulder in comfort. Neither her nor Artie said anything. Her life sucked. She couldn't do anything. She felt tired all the time. She was right earlier, she loved Santana so much it hurt. Mostly it just hurt though. She was beginning to think that Santana wasn't a book worth reading.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry this chapter falls shorter than the last few but I hope you like it! :)**

Brittany didn't sleep well that night; she was still too upset about what had happened at the diner with Santana and Artie. Occasionally she would wake up, sit bolt upright and check to see if she had urinated. She never. That at least was a silver lining, if she had, it'd be the first time her sleep anxieties were caused by something other than her dad's absence, and _that _would be a whole other can of worms she thought.

She put on shorts and a baseball top, although she found herself not really caring all that much what she looked like. What was the point? She'd have to take these stupid crutches everywhere anyway. She hopped down the stairs ready to start the last day of school for the week, maybe she shouldn't have went back so fast, oh well, she'd rest at the weekend, she'd have a full weekend without Santana. She didn't want to speak to her anyway. She checked her phone, nothing from Santana. She didn't even text to apologize. Brittany rolled her eyes as she went to grab her crutches but one of them slid down the wall and clattered against the floor. Her dad came through to the hallway.

"You ready kiddo?"

"What?" Brittany snapped as she tried to bend over and retrieve her crutch. "Also stop calling me kiddo, it's stupid, I'm not a kid," the blonde snarled once she got it and stood up.

Her dad just blinked at her, looking taken aback. She had never spoken to him like that. "What's up with you lately?" he asked. "These past few days you've been really down-"

"Well duh, I had a stupid accident that should have never happened and not-"

"I know you're frustrated about that sweetie," he interjected "but I get the feeling it runs deeper than that, you've not been yourself recently, I miss the shine in your eyes and your optimism" he smiled warily at her.

Brittany instantly felt her anger disperse and slumped her shoulders. She forgot that her knack for reading people was a gift from her father.

"Everything is fine, just take me to school" she lied anyway.

Shortly after, Brittany arrived at school and swung her way to her locker, she needed to swap some of her books. At the corner of her eye she saw Artie wheel his way up to her.

"Hey" she smiled weakly, turning to him.

"Hey"

"Look, even though I'm totally not speaking to her, I'll make Santana apologize for what she said to-"

"She already apologized" Artie said, stopping and waving his hand.

"Wait…what?" Brittany said confused. Santana apologized to Artie but not to her? If anything, this just made her angrier with the other girl.

"Yeah, she apologized, about ten minutes ago actually, in the choir room…it's your guys first official day at glee club after school and well…she's singing a song…"

"Oh" Brittany sighed. She had forgotten she was supposed to do a duet with Santana; well technically she would just dance around her. She briefly glanced down at her crutches. Well that isn't going to happen. "Was her apology sincere?"

Artie shrugged a shoulder then nodded. "Seemed so, but whatever, I'm willing to forget it happened if everyone else is, anyway I just wanted to say hi and remind you glee club is just after school so…look forward to seeing you there…" he smiled as he wheeled away.

The rest of the school day went in slowly, teachers and students giving her weird looks or looks of pity, she could tell people want to ask her questions. How did you fall? Are your legs broken? Are you a cripple? Whatever. She tried to ignore them. For the first time she wished she were like Santana, then nobody would look twice at her.

She went to Spanish, Santana was already here sitting in the back, she wore a semi-transparent white shirt and had her fringe clasped back, she looked particularly angelic today. Santana was looking at her with giant puppy dog eyes, as if she knew she was in the wrong but didn't appear to want to do or say anything about it. Brittany rolled her eyes and didn't give the girl another thought as she sat down next to Rachel instead.

The kicks to her chair from behind didn't come this time. Brittany didn't know if that bothered her or not, at least when she kicked her chair it implied she cared.

Once classes ended for the day, Brittany headed toward the choir room. Everybody was already here, she felt slightly awkward clattering her way in with her crutches. Everyone fell quiet and stopped to look at her. Blaine, Kurt, Sam, Rory, Artie, Tina and Mike were sitting in the front row and Finn, Mercedes, Sugar, Puck, Rachel and Santana were sitting in the back row.

"Good! You're here, just in time!" Rachel clapped excitedly as she stepped down and came toward her.

"Uh….yeah…where do I sit?" Brittany asked awkwardly. Everyone was staring at her, but they were all smiling, she really liked this group of people, she had a good feeling about them. Well, everyone was smiling at her bar one. Santana was just staring at the floor.

"Anywhere you want! We're just about to watch Santana's first solo performance"

"Oh OK" Brittany said forcing herself to smile at Santana, but she wasn't even looking. She took a seat next to Artie, setting her crutches down at the side. She could feel Santana's eyes on the back of her.

"So guys" bellowed Mr. Shue suddenly from the doorway as he walked in and clapped his hands together once enthusiastically. "Sectionals was a success but now we have regionals to focus on, now I know it's not for a few months but I feel we need to nail down our choreography, we're not the best dancers, it's our weak spot, but we need to be more coherent with each other, even you Finn" Mr. Shue said as he sat at the piano. "That is why, I'm going to appoint Mike and Brittany as our choreographers, and it's going to be your responsibility for our routines at the next competition!"

A few people clapped but Brittany felt sick, she's not sure she was ready for that responsibility. She'd only gotten her foot in the door, literally.

"Uhm…Mr. Shue?" Brittany said, feebly raising her hand. "I'm not like sure I can…do this…I mean for starters I'm in crutches, I can't teach any of these other guys to do anything," she mumbled.

"Well like I said regional is a couple of months away, we hope you'll be back on your feet again by then" Mr. Shue smiled kindly at her. "In the meantime you can watch and instruct the others, I've seen you do your cheerio routines, you're more than capable"

Brittany smiled and felt a warm feeling of pride. Did he really did trust her to do this?

"But now I believe we're going to hear our other newest member sing, am I right?" he smiled and motioned his hand at Santana.

Santana got up from her chair, as did Puck. The other girl laid her hand on Brittany's shoulder, using her as leverage as she stepped down the step to the front. Brittany closed her eyes and shuddered as her whole body reacted. God. She did that on purpose, didn't she? All too soon she was gone and sitting on a stool in front of the club. Puck was sitting on the stool next to her, guitar at the ready. Brittany was curious and excited really, if there was one side of Santana that would never let her down, it was her voice. It was so dark and lovely.

"Uh…" Santana began shakily, she seemed uncharacteristically nervous. Brittany wondered why, her voice was awesome. "I _was _supposed to sing a song today," Santana paused looking around, her eyes landing on Brittany only to dart quickly away again. "But uh my plans have changed a little, I am going to sing but," she paused again and started fiddling with her hands. "Not the song I originally planned, and instead I'd like…I'd like to sing…uh…I'd like to sing this song to Brittany, if she doesn't mind?" Santana asked quietly and uncertainly.

Brittany's heart stopped. Literally stopped for a second. She could feel the blood rush to her face, she probably looked purple. Santana was going to sing to her? Why? What was she going to sing? What did this mean? Was she really doing this in front of people? Brittany's brain went into overdrive. When she didn't answer the question, Santana spoke again, her voice even more unstable.

"I wont if you don't want me to, I mean it's not about you…well it is…but it's more about me…no…that's not right," Santana continued, scratching the back of her neck awkwardly. "Well it is, but what I mean is…it's _to_ you from me, not about you…or maybe it's more _for_ you than _to_ you? I don't know," she mumbled. Santana's cheeks were tingeing red slightly. She was rambling. She was nervous.

Brittany in turn felt nervous. "It's OK" she heard her own voice say quietly, even though she didn't recall her brain telling her mouth to say that.

"OK," Santana exhaled looking a bit relieved. "Uh…so…yeah. This song was originally by Nine Inch Nails but Johnny Cash did it better. So shut up and listen," she said to the others, her confidence back a little. "Hit it" she tilted her head at Puck.

Puck started strumming the chords on his guitar, the tune slow and melancholy.

"_I hurt myself today  
>To see if I still feel<em>

_I focus on the pain  
>The only thing that's real"<em>

Santana's voice was delicate and gravely. She was singing and looking around at the others.

"_The needle tears a hole  
>The old familiar sting<br>Try to kill it all away  
>But I remember everything"<em>

The room was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

"_What have I become?  
>My sweetest friend" <em>

Santana finally looked at her and gave her a wry smile that quickly faded, her face serious. Her eyes looked…wet…was she crying?_  
><em>

"_Everyone I know goes away  
>In the end"<em>

Santana shrugged a shoulder at Brittany as she sang the line, inevitably and shakily._  
><em>

"_And you could have it all  
>My empire of dirt<br>I will let you down  
>I will make you hurt"<em>

Santana bowed her head at the last line, almost as if making Brittany a promise on that.

Santana looked to the guitar as Puck continued playing. Brittany felt a lump form in her throat and the back of her own eyes sting. She couldn't cry. Then why did she feel like crying?

_"I wear this crown of thorns  
>Upon my liar's chair<br>Full of broken thoughts  
>I cannot repair"<em>

Brittany exhaled unevenly. Tears were definitely forming in her eyes, Santana's too by the looks of it.

"_Beneath the stains of time  
>The feelings disappear<br>You are someone else  
>I am still right here"<em>

Santana rasped delicately as she placed a hand over her heart.

_"What have I become?  
>My sweetest friend<br>Everyone I know goes away  
>In the end<br>And you could have it all  
>My empire of dirt<br>I will let you down  
>I will make you hurt<em>"

Brittany was now chewing her lower lip to stop herself from blubbering.

_"If I could start again  
>A million miles away<br>I would keep myself  
>I would find…a way"<em>

The song finished and there was a brief moment of silence, the type of eerie silence that happens when remembering a death. Everyone started suddenly clapping though. Santana smiled a little, tucking her hair shyly behind her ear and giving them a thankful look. She looked really small today.

The room fell silent again.

Brittany could feel that feeling again, that feeling of everyone looking between them. Santana was just sitting there, looking at her expectantly. It was too late. Tears were already spilling slowly from Brittany's face. She closed her eyes for a moment and willed her breathing to even. She didn't even know why she was crying, not really. She felt angry with Santana, she also felt like wallowing in self-pity, she felt hurt, she felt her heart swell with pride and absolute love for the other girl also. Too many conflicting feelings and her body just shut down. She didn't clap or move.

"Uh…so guys that's all for today" came Mr. Shue's voice. She could tell from his tone that he was urging the others to leave.

"Yeah…I uh…my dad's are expecting me" Rachel said as she practically glared at the others to leave.

The room spilled out, Rachel shutting the door quietly behind them. Only Santana was left, still sitting there on the stool, her eyes shining with tears but her face stoic.

Brittany had no idea what to say. What did Santana even want her to say?

"So…uh," Santana began hesitantly breaking the silence. "What did you think? Did you like it?" she asked, almost like she had built her an entire city of houses and was asking whither it was still enough or not.

Brittany felt another tear slip down her cheek. She rubbed it away with her hand. "That was beautiful" she heard her own voice say quietly.

She heard Santana exhale then the other girl dragged her stool across the room and placed it right in front of the chair Brittany was sitting on so they were sitting opposite one another.

"I was thinking of a way to apologize to you…again…" Santana said softly. "I figured another iphone wouldn't cut it" she joked a little, her smirk fading quickly. "Uh," she continued seeing that Brittany was unresponsive apart from the tears staining her face. "I'm not that great at talking about…you know…feelings and stuff…so I figured it would be easier if I just sang em'? You know?"

Brittany just nodded, wiping away more tears.

"I'm sorry" Santana said after a while. "I was drunk and an asshole, but it was only because you went out with Artie!"

"So it's my fault?" Brittany said, finally finding her voice.

"No, no…" Santana conceded shaking her head. "That's never happened before, that's _why _I drink, and I don't normally get like that, I'm normally happy and harmless when I drink…" Santana shrugged looking solemn.

Brittany blinked. Santana was talking to her about stuff. Important stuff.

"Clearly not all the time" said Brittany, unable to leave out the bitterness in her voice.

"Yeah" Santana sighed in agreement. She looked down at the floor and began fiddling with her fingers again. "Please…forgive me? I know I'm asking a lot-"

"Yeah you are," Brittany interrupted, her tears stopped flowing for now. "You have no idea how you make me feel"

Santana just bowed her head, like a dog that knew it's master was upset with it.

"You just…just…ugh you have no idea," Brittany exclaimed, frustrated at her own inability to put things into words. "I've had enough Santana, I've had enough of your abuse, I've put up with a lot coming from you and I just can't do it any more. You claim we're best friends and that you care for me but really? Sometimes I wonder, because you never tell me how you're feeling and when you do it's only to say crap to me or get irrationally jealous of silly things. That's why you came up with this arrangement, isn't it? You just want to have sex with me and me to walk around my happy self to like entertain you or something, but you don't want to deal with the _rest_ of me. You don't care about anybody but yourself."

"That's not true" Santana said quietly. Now it was her turn to wipe at her face as a tear escaped one of her brown eyes. "You're the second most important person in my life, I don't want to loose you"

There was a brief silence. Was Brittany really that important to her? Even more than Rachel?

"Yesterday," Brittany began, the saliva in her throat thick and warm. Her voice was disappearing under the enormity of her feelings right now. "You said things would get better for me, and then you go make everything worse, why? Why did you do that? Do you just like playing games with me all the time?"

Santana looked down and shook her head, scraping her fingernails along the palm of her hand.

"Then I just don't understand you, I told you I wouldn't go if you said-"

"I thought I was OK with it, OK?" Santana interjected and crossed her arms defensively. "I don't like the idea of him touching you"

"You think I would have slept with him?" Brittany spat incredulously. "Artie and I are just friends, he only asked me to catch something to eat with him, but that didn't stop you from ruining everything. Although I don't see why it bothers you so much-"

"Because you're mine, OK?" Santana interrupted impatiently. Her arms slumped and her eyes shot wide, as if hearing her own words for the first time.

"I'm…yours?" Brittany repeated slowly, her heart beating deep and hollow like a large drum.

Silence.

"I'm yours," Brittany repeated, blinking at Santana in wonderment. She was so confused. Getting a straight answer from this girl was like drawing blood from a stone.

Santana just gulped and nodded timidly.

Brittany was frustrated and confused by that answer. "So, I'm yours," she repeated yet again, just to make sure she had heard right. "So let me get this right…I'm yours but you don't want to _be with _me, and yet you don't want anybody else to have me either?"

Santana ran a hand through her hair and blinked her tears away, clearly distressed. "Look, I don't know OK?" she said.

Brittany could already tell she was retreating.

"I'm not an object, you can't own me"

"I know," Santana said. "And I promise from now on you can see, talk to whoever you want, I wont do or say anything. You have my word."

Brittany cocked her head. "What's changed? You weren't OK with it last night, so what's changed?"

"What I've realized is," Santana began, her eyes flicking uncertainly all over the contours of Brittany's face. "I've never wanted to be with someone before, I just…can't date people, but with you? I feel that, maybe one day, I could…want that…with you…just you"

Brittany's heart fluttered uncontrollably behind her ribcage, mimicking the butterflies now in her stomach. "So…what are you saying?" Brittany blurted out.

Santana got up from her stool and walked over to the piano, trailing a finger along the top of it in thought. Brittany watched her with interest, her organs doing all sorts of things inside her body.

"I'm saying," Santana said quietly and turned around to face the blonde again. "That one day, I'd like to think that you and I could be more than just friends, more than an arrangement"

Brittany sucked in her lower lip to stop herself from practically whimpering. "One day? Is today that day?"

Santana looked at her sadly and shook her head.

"Why not?" Brittany whispered, feeling hurt.

"Because I just can't OK?" Santana said, her defences coming back up. "You're so perfect, all the time," Santana said quietly, her head tilting to the side, looking at Brittany with fascination. "I…I have things I need to deal with, I need to be perfect for you, all the time, like you are with me."

"Santana we've been through this, I think you are perfect and-"

"But I'm not," Santana countered. "You see everything through your wonderful Brittany goggles, and it's beautiful, _you're_ beautiful."

Brittany felt her cheeks trickle and burn red.

"But the truth is Blondie?" Santana said, sighing lovingly at her. It made Brittany feel like she was about to melt into a puddle. "I'm not good enough for you," she added sadly.

Brittany opened her mouth to argue but Santana silenced her by holding up a hand.

"I'm really not," she said firmly. "But I guess what's changed is that I _want _to be…so there's that…" Santana shrugged.

Brittany got up and walked slowly to the other girl, putting pressure on her bad leg, but she didn't care.

"So what now?" Brittany asked miserably. Santana finally admitted she felt something more for her, and she thought all this time it would take her to cloud nine, but she just felt even more down.

Santana smiled a little and held out her pinky. Brittany felt a smile tug her lips, the first one in what felt like forever as she wrapped her own pinky around the other girls. Tingly. Santana felt like home.

"We continue on as usual? Minus the arrangement I guess" she said a little dejected. "I mean it's probably for the best, but I don't know how that's going to work since I really can't keep myself away from you" she smirked, tugging at the pinky in hers.

Brittany gave a bashful smile, tapping her foot against Santana's playfully.

"We can take things slow, OK?" Brittany said. "How aboooooout," she began slowly. "I take you out on a date and–"

"That's not slow Britt" Santana said, instantly dropping Brittany's pinky finger and looking worried.

"Hear me out silly" Brittany smiled at her. "I take you out on a date, nothing special, I mean nothing that we don't normally do, then you ask me out on the next one, whenever you feel your ready and we won't talk about it outside of that, so like you can wait a week or a year…although obviously I hope you don't wait that long cause…"

Brittany trailed as Santana was chuckling a little. Brittany grinned at her, her insides feeling like they were doing the conga. Santana was so beautiful when she genuinely smiled. Her dimples were so cute.

"Does that sound OK?" Brittany asked uncertainly.

Santana's face turned serious as she looked up in thought. "Yeah…OK…I could be down with that" she nodded a little.

"OK" Brittany sighed.

"OK" Santana parroted.

"OK" Brittany grinned again.

"You said that" Santana smiled.

Silence fell between them as they stole glances and small smiles at each other, almost forgetting the world entirely. Brittany wasn't sure what was going to happen, but she suddenly felt out of her rut completely.

"So…" Santana began, ending the awkward silence. "You want a lift home?"

"Oh, yes please" Brittany nodded happily. "But if we're taking things slow then you should probably like drive super slow so we can talk a lot and you can sing to me in the car and maybe we can stop for ice cream?"

Santana frowned then the biggest smile spread across her face. She rolled her eyes a little.

"Sure, whatever you want Blondie"


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Hey, tried to get this up before Thursdays episode but it didn't work out that way. Anyway, let me know what you think about latest developments. ;)**

Santana pulled up the car at Brittany's house.

"Well," Brittany sighed. "I'm totally disappointed cause you never like took me for ice cream or talked or even sang to me"

She looked over to the other girl who was just smirking at her, a new kind of amused smirk, and a renewed light in her eyes. Brittany couldn't help but grin, she just felt suddenly so happy. She felt like something had changed between them, although she wasn't sure what. She also suddenly felt a lot older, like a grown-up for the first time in her life. Santana was different; she wasn't like the boys or girls she kissed for fun. Santana was actually somebody she wanted a relationship with, a future with, a life with. She wasn't going to screw this up, and she wasn't going to allow Santana to screw it up either.

"We're OK?" Santana asked, looking insecure for a fraction of a second.

Brittany nodded happily. "We're OK"

"Until I say or do something to piss you off again" mumbled Santana, rolling her eyes and looking away. She seemed to instantly undermine and disappoint herself.

"Probably" Brittany conceded smiling, reaching a hand out and nudging under Santana's chin playfully. "You're lucky I like you so much"

Love actually, she thought. But they were taking things slow.

Brittany looked out the window to her house, having an idea. "You wanna stay at mine for the weekend?" turning back to face Santana.

Santana sucked in her lower lip, her fingertip running along the top of the car wheel slowly. The Latina's deep brown eyes glanced into her own, full of desire and mischief. God, she was so…

"Brittany," Santana said low but softly, it made Brittany's legs stiffen. There was a hint of playful warning about her tone. "We're supposed to be taking things slow?"

"Yeah" Brittany gulped. "But it just seems like I'm always at yours, and it's Friday, what were you planning on doing anyways?"

"Getting high in my room" Santana said tonelessly.

Brittany frowned then tilted her head sympathetically. "You see? You should totally stay at mine, all weekend! We'll have fun. I was planning on lying in my bed all weekend, I think I tried to do too much all at once."

"You think, huh?" Santana smirked.

"C'mon, please?" Brittany said, giving her best cute pout. "You can come over and we can just like lie in my bed all weekend, totally pig out. Not with actual pigs but you know…"

Santana chuckled a little, "that actually sounds like a lot of fun Blondie"

"So that's a yes?"

"Fine," Santana conceded. "C'mon" she said as she went to open the car door.

"Wait! Don't we need to go to yours? You know to get your stuff? I mean, I have a spare toothbrush you can borrow but what about underwear and clothes and-"

"I'll wear _your_ panties" Santana breathed lowly and sucked in her bottom lip, making a little humming noise, her dark eyes roaming somewhere below Brittany's neck.

"I uh…" Brittany staggered, completely thrown by the way Santana was looking at her. She had seen that look before.

Santana smirked and leaned her arm over, her hand coming behind Brittany's neck. The other girl started trailing her fingertips along pastel smooth skin, teasing and stroking the baby fine hairs at the blonde's nape.

"Do I make you nervous?" Santana asked, her fingertips moving in circles at the back of Brittany's neck.

"S-sometimes" Brittany choked out, her insides going insane as goose bumps crawled over her skin. She was so pathetic around Santana.

Santana chuckled almost mockingly, "Mhmm, only sometimes huh?" she said lowly. "What about now, am I making you nervous now?"

"Y-yes" Brittany answered honestly, unwilling to move.

Santana laughed more and removed her hand, patting her on the lap. "C'mon, let's go" she smiled as she got out the car.

Brittany exhaled in relief. Santana went around the other side as Brittany opened the car door at her side and stood up, reaching back to grab her crutches. She smiled bashfully at Santana as the other girl closed the door for her and they both headed toward the house.

Brittany opened her front door; glad to quickly release herself from her crutches as she put them by the shoe rack. She turned around to find Santana hadn't been following behind her.

"Santana…?" she said as she hobbled back out onto the porch.

Santana kind of pounced out of nowhere from the side, arms behind back with a strange look on her face. Brittany grinned bemused at her.

"Uhm…what are you doing?"

"Uh…" Santana hesitated then brought her hands out from behind her back. She was holding a single flower in her hand, an offering to Brittany.

Brittany blinked at it as the biggest grin swept across her face, she started to giggle.

"What?" Santana scowled and pouted, she now looked adorably offended. "I thought it was a good start…" Santana mumbled looking down.

Brittany stopped giggling and just looked at the other girl, her heartbeat speeding up considerably. She wanted to kiss her.

"San, that's so sweet," sighed Brittany as she closed the gap between them and gently tugged the flower out of her hand. "But you totally just stole this from my garden" Brittany giggled again looking at the many flowerbeds by her porch.

"So?" Santana shrugged.

"Well, my mom's a florist, that's what she does for a living, she normally grows some of her flora out here, for the shop"

"Oh," Santana's face changed to realization, she shifted her weight on her feet looking a little guilty.

Brittany giggled again. She was just so cute. "Don't worry," she said as she twirled the flower in her hand and looked at dark hazel eyes now staring back at her in wonderment. "She usually blames Lord Tubbington anyways if plants are ruined or flowers go missing, he usually eats em'"

Santana chuckled and nodded, her cheeks turning a pale red, matching the flower now in the blonde's hand.

"It's interesting," Brittany pondered aloud, looking bashfully between the flower and Santana.

Santana frowned, not following.

"That you picked _this_ flower, out of all the other flowers," Brittany said quietly as she stood closer to Santana, their body's inches apart.

"Whys that?" Santana asked softly, her voice equally as quiet now.

"Flowers have meanings, and it's just curious that you chose to give me a single red tulip" Brittany said slowly.

Santana swallowed thickly and seemed to be listening intently to her every word.

"Red tulips usually mean..." Brittany trailed and brought the flower up to the small space between them. She gently pressed the flower against Santana's luscious lips, sliding the delicate tulip along her lower lip slowly. Santana just watched her, captivated. "Declaration of love," said Brittany softly as she batted her lashes. She felt Santana's gaze deepen and saw her cheeks turn a further crimson.

"Oh…" Santana breathed against the flower twirling playfully over her lips.

Brittany smiled and retracted it. Not wanting the other girl to feel awkward she spoke. "C'mon" she said, taking Santana's hand in hers and leading her inside. Too soon the tingles were gone as Santana quickly let go of her hand once her dad came through from the kitchen and into the hallway.

"Santana!" he said grinning, extending a large hand out to her.

She shook it awkwardly and smiled a little as he patted her roughly on the back.

"Hey dad is it OK if Santana stays for the weekend?"

"Is it OK?" he asked unbelievably. "Sweetie, Santana could shoot me in the face and it would still be OK. C'mon in girls, dinner will be ready in ten minutes"

Brittany giggled as Santana shrugged timidly.

"I think he likes you, since you know, you saved my life and all" Brittany whispered to Santana as her dad returned to the kitchen.

A little while later they had settled down at the dining table eating dinner while the TV was providing background noise. Brittany chewed her meatloaf nervously as her mom kept shooting Santana disparaging looks. Her dad however, he, much like Brittany, was besotted by her.

"That's amazing," he bellowed as Santana just spent ten minutes talking about her school grades and her love of singing.

"Yeah so, I don't know, I have many options after school. My head's telling me to go to law school, my heart's telling to go pursue singing like my mom," Santana chuckled at him, her eyes alive in conversation in a way she had almost never seen before. It made Brittany smile that the two most important people in her life were getting on like a house on fire.

"If there's one thing I've learned since meeting Britt," Santana continued, shooting her a modest look. "Is that sometimes you can be a lot smarter using your heart than your head" she said, quirking an eyebrow at her.

"Was there a backhanded compliment in there somewhere?" Brittany teased her, giving her a playful look across the table.

"Maybe…" Santana flirted back coyly, shrugging a shoulder.

Brittany blushed. Maybe they shouldn't be so obvious.

"Are you enjoying the meal, Santana?" her dad asked.

"Yeah, thank you, better than what I usually cook myself"

"You cook?" her dad asked, impressed.

"Oh yeah," said Santana nodding. "I make a lot of Mexican dishes, but my roots are Spanish and Puerto Rican so I try branch out and cook some of them too. My favorite Puerto Rican meal is a chicken and rice dish called Asopao de Pollo"

Brittany sighed at the girl as she rested her head on her hand. She was so in love with Santana, it wasn't even funny. She wished she could just sit here and listen to her talk for hours on end.

"This girl! Is there anything she can't do?" her dad bellowed and laughed.

"Mmmm" her mom hummed indifferently.

Santana just shrugged, looking like the attention was very much unwanted.

"There is this one cuisine that I want Brittany to try out," said Santana, her voice low and familiar.

Brittany shot her head up and looked across at Santana who had a knowing smirk on her face and a glint in her eyes. Brittany felt the hairs on her neck stand on their ends so she took a sip of water to distract herself.

Santana ran her tongue along her lips slowly before continuing, "I really can't wait till she puts it in her mouth"

Brittany almost choked on her water.

"It tastes awesome" Santana smirked "sadly we just haven't got round to it yet"

Brittany felt herself flush as she coughed, willing the water to go down her throat the right way. She could feel her face turning red.

"So Santana, do you have a boyfriend?" her mother suddenly asked sharply.

Instantly the warm atmosphere was plunged into icy, awkward depths. At least for the two girls now looking at each other across the table. Blue eyes locked with brown, and suddenly they seemed to be having some sort of silent conversation.

"Uh," Santana began, placing her fork down, "No" she said simply, scratching her cheek in thought.

"Oh? How come?" her mom inquired nosily.

"Don't pester the girl Katherine," said her dad frowning at her.

Santana once again looked to Brittany. The blonde's mind was racing but then suddenly the answer became obvious to her. If her and Santana were ever going to become an item, this is something they'd need to do anyway; they may as well bite the bullet…

Brittany gave a small nod to the Latina.

"Actually," began Santana more confidently, raising her chin in the air. "I'm not really the relationship type…" Santana said, her eyes flickering nervously to Brittany. "And even if I were, lets just say it wouldn't be with the male variety"

"Hrmph" her mother made a dismissive sound and continued eating without further question.

Brittany kicked Santana's foot under the table when it looked like she was about to go all Lima Heights on her mom. She shook her head. Don't. Santana slowly closed her mouth as her frown disappeared.

Her dad however was smiling between them, an even larger smile than he had been wearing all evening, like he had just been let in on the coolest secret ever. Brittany began to wolf down her food quicker, desperately wanting this dinner to end as soon as possible.

Ten minutes later they had dismissed themselves and were now going into Brittany's room. The blonde closed the bedroom door behind them.

"So…" Santana sighed. "What crawled up your moms ass and died?"

Brittany shrugged. "She wasn't always like this"

"Oh?" Santana said as she sat on the bed, wanting her to elaborate.

"Mhmm" Brittany hummed in thought. "She used to be nice but then dad joined the army and it seems like the longer he was away the more she cut herself off from people. Sometimes I think that when people feel lonely, oddly enough they think that keeping people at a distance is somehow the answer but I dunno…she's just became so bitter…she doesn't talk a whole lot and the chip on her shoulder just seems to have gotten bigger over the years. Even the loveliest of people can turn the coldest," she said, looking pointedly at Santana.

Santana just stared at her. After a beat she rolled her eyes and got up and stretched her arms out. "Whatever, what can I wear to bed?"

Brittany went through to the bathroom to change into a grey tank top and shorts. She looked at herself in the mirror as she splashed cold water on her face. She suddenly wanted to tell Santana how much she loved her; she wanted to hear what it would sound like rolling off her tongue.

"Slow, Brittany...slow…" she mumbled to herself, shaking her head as she made her way back to her bedroom.

Once she returned her mouth gaped open as Santana was wearing one of her dad's old black shirts and bright yellow panties. Brittany's panties, her SpongeBob Square Pants ones. She felt the blood rush to her cheeks in embarrassment; she even felt her ears burn red.

Santana sat down at the chair beside her bed, a smirk on her face. "Daww, don't be embarrassed I found your secret pair of underwear Blondie" she said lowly. "I think they're sexy"

"On you maybe" Brittany mumbled.

Brittany sat on her bed numbly as Santana stood up and approached her slowly, a mischievous smirk on her face. Really, no one should look hot in a black t-shirt at least ten sizes too large and bright yellow SpongeBob Square Pants underwear, but somehow Santana did. She was just hot all the time, Brittany wondered if she had some sort of hot gene that science had not yet discovered.

"Uh, so what you wanna do now?" Brittany asked, looking around her room nervously. Maybe she was looking for an exit, she had no idea.

"Oh, I can think of a few things" Santana sighed, her eyes a shade darker. She stopped right in front of the blonde, her kneecaps hitting against Brittany's. Santana placed a warm hand over Brittany's chest and slowly pushed her onto her back, Santana quickly followed as she straddled Brittany.

"What are you doing?" Brittany choked out, looking up at the girl now sitting on her.

Santana didn't answer, her smirk just grew wider as her eyes glinted in the dull light of the room.

"You know you only topped me because you caught me off guard that time, right? You totally sneak attacked me," Santana said matter-of-factly.

Brittany snorted, "Sneak attacked you?"

"Mhmm, hmm" Santana hummed, her lips pursing together. Santana walked her fingers along Brittany's stomach then grabbed the blonde's right hand and brought it up to her face.

"Wha…" Brittany's words caught in her throat as her heart began beating wildly.

Santana spread Brittany's fingers out, and clasped her own around Brittany's middle and index fingers. Suddenly her fingers had disappeared and were now inside Santana's mouth.

"Oh my…" Brittany breathed. She felt a warm tongue meet her flesh, and Santana's eyes seemed to darken further as they scanned her face. She began to suck slowly on Brittany's fingers, her tongue fluttering around her knuckles. Brittany's fingers were long and slender; she could almost feel the back of Santana's tongue. The heat that started in her palm quickly moved through the rest of her body and settled in the pit of her stomach. She may not have had the best feeling in her hands recently, but this was the most alive they had ever felt.

Santana began to move her head up and down slowly, pale fingers moving at a painstaking pace, entering in and out the Latina's mouth.

Brittany groaned as the rush of her blood was now mirroring the pulsating feeling between her legs. "Santana," she breathed, "We…we're more than just about sex right?" she asked uncertainly, amazed at her ability to form a sentence right now.

Santana stopped sucking and released her fingers with a wet pop. A more serious expression washed over her features.

"Yes, Brittany…we are…" she said with certainty.

Brittany felt her lips form a grin, "what are we about then?"

"I don't know" Santana said, biting her lower lip. "I haven't figured it out yet"

"That's OK" Brittany smiled up at her, bringing her fingers back up and smoothing along Santana's lips.

Santana pulled away and shifted off her. Brittany was about to ask if she had did something wrong but then Santana was running her hands behind Brittany's bare thighs, slowly coaxing her legs to kneel and part. Santana smirked as she settled in-between the blonde's legs, her face towering above Brittany's. They both gasped as Santana leaned down to kiss Brittany but her center rocked into Brittany's, it felt like a sudden jolt of electricity. They both looked at each other then slowly down to the nonexistent space between them, Santana's hips were fully on hers. Santana rolled her hips once more down onto Brittany.

"Oh…" Brittany moaned. "Santana, we're supposed to be going slow, plus my parents are just down the stairs" she rasped, her voice sounding entirely unlike her own.

Santana chuckled and began grinding her hips in a slow circular motion, their clothed sexes pressing and building up heat together. Santana dipped her hips lower and pressed more harshly against her.

"Is this slow enough for you Britt Britt?" Santana husked.

Brittany went to answer but Santana had sunk her large lips down onto Brittany's. She felt her sex thud and throb.

Brittany sighed audibly as their mouths soon opened and their tongues started dipping and mashing together fervently. Brittany began panting into the other girl's mouth as Santana continued to grind down onto her in circular motions, like some sort of slow, hypnotizing dance. All Brittany could do was run her hands all over the Latina's back, and will that she not take Santana's top off completely.

Santana tore her self away from Brittany's mouth and leaned down, nestling into Brittany's neck. She began kissing sloppily behind Brittany's ear, her warm breath tickling her senses. Brittany felt even more liquid pool at her sex. Her panties felt soaked and she swore she could feel Santana's dampness, even through her shorts.

"The things you do to me Britt" Santana rasped in her ear, her whole body moving in a circular trance. "Fuck, I need you"

Brittany sighed shakily and closed her eyes. Despite the fact that she was incredibly turned on right now she still had the nagging voice in the back of her head, telling her that they should take things slow. What if they had sex again? What if everything just went back to the way they were? She needed to know this wasn't just _it_. That they were going somewhere. Anywhere.

Santana stopped her movements, came up and looked down into blue eyes. Brittany's breathing deepened as Santana's hair draped darkly all around her, dark hooded eyes looking down at her with lust, empathy and something else she couldn't quite place.

"Please…" Santana said softly.

Brittany chewed her bottom lip and nodded. She'd figure everything out later; right now her body ached for Santana.

As soon as Santana had the green light she quickly sat up and tugged down her underwear, kicking them off somewhere behind her. She smirked at Brittany as she locked eyes with the blonde, slowly sliding her panties and shorts down long legs. She patted the side of Brittany's legs to tell her to life them, so she did. Brittany's heart was trembling behind her ribcage; breathing began to hurt a little, but right now the anticipation outweighed everything.

Santana was staring at the space in-between Brittany's legs. Her dark eyes became hooded as small puffs of air left her lips. Brittany could feel her whole body burn under her gaze.

"Santana?" Brittany's voice stuttered out.

Santana snapped out of her daze a little.

Brittany blushed and smiled a little, "are you OK?"

"No…not really"

Brittany hadn't expected that answer. She went to close her legs but Santana stopped her by placing a warm hand on her knee.

"Sit up and lean back, and keep your legs spread" Santana asked. Brittany with her heart still trembling quickly complied.

Santana's lips formed a small smirk. "I love how wet I make you" Santana suddenly groaned, her voice sounding strangled. Santana was just sitting there staring at the apex of her thighs.

Brittany's heart stopped. She thinks it was at the word 'love', and for a tiny moment she thought just maybe…

Santana sat back in a similar position to Brittany, exposing herself to Brittany. The blonde subconsciously licked her lips; she wanted to place her lips over the most intimate area of Santana, so badly. Santana scooted closer to Brittany and then she realized what she was doing. Santana placed a leg over her thigh and leaned back a little on the weight of one of her arms.

"Ugh…Santana…" Brittany breathed out. Their sexes were inches away from each other. She could feel the moist heat emanate from the other girl. It was calling her, sucking her in.

Santana gave her one last look of longing, her dark hair fallen beautifully around her face. A mischievous glint formed in her eye. "We're going to have to be very quiet" she hushed, looking back at the door and back to her.

Brittany just nodded vigorously.

Santana inched forward and closed the gap. They both gasped simultaneously as their hot and wet sexes met each other. Their lips parted and melded into one another, all soaking and sticky and warm. Brittany felt dizzy; it was just so warm and…wonderful…

"Fuck" Santana gasped as she began grinding her hips into Brittany.

Tingles. So many of them, everywhere, but especially at her center. Brittany gasped and tried to hold her breath in fear of making any sort of noise. She could feel her sex throb against Santana's the same way she could feel her heart throb against her ribcage. She quickly began to move her hips in tandem with Santana's.

A whine escaped the back of her throat as she took a gulp of air.

"You like that, huh?" Santana smirked and started moving faster against her, repeating the circular motion she made earlier.

"I never thought…" Brittany was beginning to pant. "That." Pant. "This." Pant. "Would feel." Pant. "So." Pant. "Good…ohhhh…"

With every pant came every thrust of their hips, their clits sliding and dipping against each others, every time the sensitive pieces of flesh touched it felt like a ginormous bolt of electric shock. Brittany sped up to keep up with Santana as they lost their rhythm a bit, they soon fell back into it and it was honestly one of the most amazing feelings Brittany had ever felt.

The idea, the feel of the juices mixing together was so…Brittany had to hold a hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

Santana swapped the hand she was leaning back on and brought her other one to grasp the bedpost at the bottom of the bed. She rocked faster and harder into Brittany, so hard that the bed started to move slightly, making soft dunking noises against the floor.

"I'm going to come all over you" Santana moaning sounding out of breath, her mouth opening and shutting, her brow furrowed in concentration. There was a thin layer of sweat over her face.

"Please" Brittany begged her to.

Santana was the first one to go over the edge, her hips jerking against Brittany, her moans strangled as she bit her lip, her grip tightening around the bedpost. Brittany seeing Santana tremble between her legs sent her over the edge. All rational thought left her head as she moaned loudly, feeling a release in her lower stomach, tingles seeped from the pit of her stomach and dispersed over the sensitive flesh of her sex, she rode wave after wave of pleasure against Santana until she finally came down from her high.

Both their breathing subsided as Santana scooted back and slumped back over Brittany. They were barely conscious. Brittany felt like jelly and was content just to lie here for a while, feeling almost boneless. Santana had lay down on her chest like before, Brittany watched as her head rose and fell with every breath she took. They said nothing for a while, Brittany didn't know how long, she was comfortable just lying here having Santana's hand (that was now stowed under her tank top) stroking her fingers along the protruding bones of her ribcage.

"You're amazing" Santana mumbled into her chest, creating a fuzzy, vibrating feeling against her heart.

What was left of her heart fluttered back in response. "So are you"

"Brittany!" she suddenly heard her dad call from the bottom of the stairs.

Brittany cleared her throat as her and Santana sat up. "Yeah?"

"Your physiotherapist is here"

"Damn" Brittany mumbled. "I forgot all about that," she said standing up. Wow. Her legs felt weaker than usual.

She looked around to Santana who was smirking at her, twirling her panties playfully around her finger. She looked gorgeous as a post-orgasm glow surrounded her features. "You know Blondie, you could always say you don't need their services as you've just had an awesome physical workout" she winked.

Brittany snatched her panties back from her and gave a mischievous look. "Maybe" she said as she slid them back up her long legs, she stomped on her left foot a little. "My left leg still feels numb, I hope this fixes it, I dunno what I'm gonna do if-"

"Britt, relax" Santana settled her before she could start. "It's not going to be an overnight fix, just keep at it"

Brittany exhaled. "OK…are you coming to watch?" she smirked at Santana.

"Pfft no" Santana said rolling her eyes a little.

"Really? Why?"

"Yeah, I don't really want to watch some pervy man or women stretch themselves all over you and have their hands all over you, all sweaty and…" Santana trailed and remained quiet.

"Santana," Brittany tilted her head. She couldn't believe Santana was being this childish, it was almost funny. "Its physiotherapy not…not…sex stuff," she giggled.

"Whatever, OK? I'm not coming" Santana said, slumping back down on Brittany's bed, her head hitting the pillows.

She was serious.

Brittany stared at her.

"I just…" Santana began, perhaps in the silence feeling the need to explain more. "I guess when it comes to you, I…" Santana paused then huffed. "Just go" she mumbled and turned her head toward the window, away from the blonde.

Brittany shrugged and left her to it, she didn't know what was up with Santana, all she knew is that she couldn't stand anybody else being around her. A feeling of pride and joy tugged at the blonde's heart.

She met a blonde woman in workout clothes and her name was Joy. Brittany giggled, rather apt for how she was feeling right now. She had already given Brittany into trouble for eating dinner before she came; apparently she wasn't supposed to do that. Apparently there were lots of things she wasn't supposed to do. She wasn't to run, to walk fast, to breathe too rapidly, to take other medication, to take caffeine, to avoid soda and to have plenty of fluid and sugar intake. Brittany didn't really understand, maybe she could ask Sugar if she had any sugar? She spent forty minutes going through yoga stretches and various muscle and cardio exercises. She did sit ups, stretches, step aerobics and wall slides. She was sweating even more than she was previously. To wind down from the physiotherapy they did breathing exercises, Joy placed a hand over Brittany's rib wound and asked her to inhale as much as she could before it started to hurt. She trained her to inhale as much as the can in each breathe before reaching that point of pain.

It had been an hour later before she was hobbling back up the stairs, completely worn out. It was only 8 O'clock on a Friday night but she wanted nothing more but to go to her bed. She opened her room door to find Santana sleeping on her bed. Brittany smiled and watched her for a moment. She closed the door gently behind her and went over to the bed, carefully lying down next to her. Santana mumbled and rolled over to face her.

She gave Brittany a lazy smile "Hey how was your wanky workout?"

Brittany snorted. "Tiring actually" she said with a yawn. "I'm sorry, you're probably really bored, maybe you should just go home…I know it's Friday but I'm really tired and I just wanna go to sleep so," she paused and twiddled her fingers nervously, she lay on her back, shut her eyes and stared up at the ceiling so she wouldn't have to look into Santana's eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm not very good company right now…" she sighed miserably.

She heard Santana giggle. Actually giggle. She almost heard it reverberate around the other girl's throat. It was such a delicious sound. It stirred her soul. She opened her eyes and looked to brown eyes that were just looking back at her warmly.

"There's nowhere I'd rather be, Britt" Santana smiled at her, her tired eyes blinking a little and the dimples on her cheeks creasing.

Brittany's heart was beginning to beat hard against her skin again.

"You want to go to sleep?" Santana asked.

Brittany just nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed by everything.

Santana got up and leaned over her to switch off the bedside lamp. Brittany closed her eyes and tried not to notice the heat of her body hovering over hers, or the smell of her…

Santana pulled the covers up over them and lay on her side facing Brittany. Brittany lay on her back. She felt Santana's hand glide over her chest until it rested over her heart.

"You still having sleep problems?" she asked quietly.

"No, not right now" Brittany answered.

"Then whys your heart beating like crazy again?"

Brittany smiled at Santana's naiveté for a change. She'd probably regret this, and this was the opposite of going slow, but she didn't care, she'd answer her honestly and Santana would have to deal.

"Isn't it obvious?" she said, still smiling sleepily.

Silence.

"Because I'm lying next to you Santana," she said simply.

More silence.

Brittany continued to stare at the ceiling as the silence crept by. She closed her eyes, she'd fall asleep any second now. Hopefully.

To Brittany's surprise she felt a warm hand wrap around hers under the covers, Santana's hand guided her own up and out the covers. Brittany opened her eyes but didn't dare look to the side to see what Santana was doing. She soon found out though when Santana had guided the palm of her hand over the other girl's chest too, placing it where Santana's hand had been over hers. Brittany's eyes popped further open; to her surprise she felt Santana's heart beat just as wildly as her own, maybe even more erratically.

She went to look at Santana but the other girl had already put her hand down and spun around, her back facing Brittany.

"Good night Brittany" Santana said quietly.

Brittany turned to face her anyway, even if she was just looking at her lovely hair and her small waist and back. Brittany made her heart go crazy just like Santana made hers go crazy. This was real. They were real.

"Good night Santana" Brittany replied smiling a little as she drifted into sleep.

She'd have the loveliest of dreams tonight.

She awoke the next morning feeling like she had the best sleep ever. The sunlight had streamed in through her window and Santana was still lying in the same position, the sunlight hitting her tan skin perfectly. Brittany sighed looking at her, she could wake up this way every morning for the rest of her life.

Suddenly her bedroom door opened quietly. It was her dad poking his head in.

"Hey kiddo, it's eleven" he whispered, seeing that Santana was asleep. Wow she actually slept until lunchtime almost.

"OK" she whispered back.

"There's a friend of yours at the door"

"Huh?" Brittany swept her hair back and sat up as slowly as she could.

Her dad just inclined his head for her to come. So she did. She got up out of bed quietly and tiptoed as best she could to the hallway.

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs she seen that Quinn was standing at the doorway, she looked apprehensive. She was wearing a white floral dress with a long yellow cardigan over it; her long blonde hair was down from her usual high pony.

"Hi" Brittany blurted out, her voice still half-asleep. "What are you doing here?"

Quinn glanced to the side sadly. "I just can't stand this Brittany," she said delicately "I need to be your friend again, I'm so sorry for what happened in cheerios, but you have to understand after what happened to Santana I vowed to myself I would never engage in conversation about anyone's…" she trailed and leaned her head in closer over the threshold. "Sexuality" she whispered it like a dirty word and looked around almost as if someone would overhear them. "Please," she said, her hazel eyes begging, "Please forgive me, I miss being your best friend"

Brittany exhaled slowly, still feeling half-asleep. She took a minute to take this in. She supposed she could forgive Quinn, she couldn't stay mad at her forever.

"I have to admit" Brittany said slowly. "I miss you too, I miss having someone to talk to," she said honestly. Her mind briefly went to Santana. Quinn was supposed to be her best friend; maybe her situation with Santana wouldn't be as confusing if she just confided in Quinn about it. Quinn was smart; she'd know what to do.

For the first time in what felt like forever, Brittany saw Quinn smile.

Brittany groaned, she couldn't really say no, and she could always use a friend that had otherwise always been nice and loyal to her.

"Oh, thank you" Quinn said rushing at her, throwing her arms around Brittany's neck. Brittany staggered back a little and giggled.

"Ok, woah there Quinn" she said as Quinn hugged her even tighter in the middle of her hallway now.

"You're the only real friend I have" Quinn confided quietly in her ear.

Brittany just nodded sympathetically, resting her head on the other blondes shoulder. Quinn was holding her very tight, was she really that upset?

"You can let go now Quinn" Brittany laughed a little.

"Oh, sorry" Quinn fumbled and stood back, wiping under her eye a little, they looked watery. "So we're OK?" Quinn asked, mirroring Santana's words from last night.

"We're OK" Brittany smiled and nodded. "You wanna hang out? Me and Santana don't have any plans"

Quinn looked confused. "You and…Santana…?"

"Oh!" Brittany said hitting her forehead. "Yeah, Santana's upstairs, she's sleeping over, you can hang out with us if you want"

Quinn's face fell.

"Oh, no that's not necessary, you know what? I just remembered I have somewhere I have to be, but I'll see you in school, OK Brittany?" she smiled awkwardly as she spun on her heel and began to leave.

Brittany was confused and called after her, "Quinn…uh…are you OK?"

"I'm fine" she insisted. "I really just have to be somewhere, but I'm glad we've sorted things out" she said as she turned again and ran gracefully toward her car.

Brittany frowned and waved her goodbye dumbly. She had no idea what just happened.

"So…" a familiar voice drawled out.

Brittany got a fright and turned around toward the stairs. At the top Santana was sitting, looking down at her.

"You and Quinn, huh?"


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Woah, over 1k reviews? No freaking way! I mostly just began this story for my own amusement, never thought it would get this feedback so thanks a lot guys. :') Sorry for the wait on this chapter, it's a long one and was a pain in the ass to write, but I hope you like it.**

**/**

"You're up" Brittany stated as she closed the front door slowly. She returned to the bottom of the stairs and looked up at Santana.

"Mhmm" Santana said indifferently and slid her way down the stairs by the ass, her long shirt occasionally lifting up. Brittany sucked in her lips at the sight of Santana still wearing her underwear. "So, you and Quinn," Santana repeated once she got to Brittany's eye level.

"Me and Quinn? What about me and Quinn?"

Santana leaned back casually; her arms draped at either side of her and smirked. A smirk that showed she knew something Brittany did not.

"You really don't see it?" Santana said, quirking an eyebrow.

Brittany looked around confused. "See what?"

Santana chuckled a little. "Ah Britt," she sighed as a smile spread across her face. "You are so fucking cute, I might actually throw up"

Brittany felt the blood rush up from the rest of her body to her cheeks as she tried to fight back a smile. She had no idea what Santana was talking about. She put her hands behind her back and shrugged bashfully, looking down at her feet.

"Quinn likes you"

Brittany looked up. "Of course she likes me" she smiled.

"No Britt," Santana began and shook her head skeptically. "I mean she _likes _you."

It took a second before Brittany registered what Santana was implying. "Huh? No she doesn't," she scoffed "Quinns straight anyway"

Santana merely shrugged a shoulder. "Fine, don't believe me" she said in a condescending tone, but a tone nonetheless that made Brittany feel like Santana knew a lot more on the subject than she did.

"I…no…" she shook her head refusing to believe this. "You're just being your usual possessive self" Brittany stated harshly.

Santana didn't seem offended by that observation, she merely shrugged again, almost as if she was agreeing with the sentiment. "Like I said, don't believe me," she paused and smiled at Brittany. "C'mon," she said standing up and holding out her hand turned upwards. She held out a hand, not a pinky, Brittany noticed.

"Where are you taking me?" Brittany smiled clasping her hand in Santana's.

Santana opened her mouth a little and let her tongue run lazily along her lower lip. She smirked. "Bed" she said simply.

"Wait," Brittany said, feeling her knee's go weaker a little. "It's almost lunch, aren't you hungry?"

"Starved" Santana said licking her lips and looking down Brittany's body.

"No, I mean," Brittany stuttered out feeling herself blush again. "My parents are here and uhm…I could make us pancakes if you want?"

"OK Blondie," Santana chuckled and let go of her hand. She leaned into Brittany's side. "Lead the way"

Brittany couldn't fight the grin on her face as she led Santana through to the kitchen. She could wake up every morning with Santana and make her pancakes, or anything. Anything she wanted. She couldn't really cook much else but she'd learn and then she'd make anything Santana wanted.

"Morning, or should I say afternoon?" Her dad winked at them as they came into the kitchen and dining area. He was at the table reading a newspaper and eating toast.

"Sir" Santana nodded at him.

Both Brittany and her dad burst out laughing. The blonde had to cover her mouth with the back of her hand when Santana scowled at her.

"What?" Santana asked, looking embarrassed.

"Look girly," Brittany's dad spoke to Santana, chewing on another bit of toast. "Just because I'm in the army don't mean you have to address me all proper, back here I'm just dad…or in your case…James"

"OK, sorry, just trying to be polite" Santana mumbled.

Brittany stared at her and started giggling. "Since when are you polite?

Santana just shrugged, looking down. Brittany felt bad for poking fun at her, only a little though.

Brittany took out the frying pan and made her pancake mixture. Her Dad left to go grocery shopping. She yawned as she flipped the frying pan, tossing the pancakes up in the air a little. She felt heat behind her, small breasts press up against her back and a chin graze and perch itself gently on her shoulder. Her heart soared to her throat as she stilled for a second.

"Smells delicious" Santana spoke in her ear. She could hear the smile in her voice. "I could get used to this"

"Me too" Brittany's mouth managed to agree.

"Mhmm? I was talking about the pancakes Britt, normally I have to make my own meals. What were you talking about?"

"Oh," Brittany sighed as her heart slid it's way slowly back down to its rightful place. "Nothing"

She served the still hot pancakes on a plate and finished it off by topping each pile with a piece of butter. They both sat at the table and began eating. Brittany smiled as she seen Santana's eyes roll back a little.

"Mhmm, oh wow OK, one of the best things I've ever tasted" she said still eating and taking another large bite.

Brittany smiled and was about to talk when her mother came into the kitchen. She seen the two girls sitting at the table and rolled her eyes.

"Honestly Brittany," she began bitterly. "I know you've to rest but there's no excuse to sit around dressed like a slob" she said. She paused as her eyes fell on Santana. "Hello Santana" she added monotonously.

"Hi" Santana said awkwardly and went back to eating, her eyes darting between Brittany and her mom.

"Pancakes again?" her mother scoffed. "Lord Brittany, you're an adult now and you can only make one meal, I honestly don't know how you're going to survive in the real world" she said as she began cleaning the dishes they had made. "You should try learning new things. I don't want the neighbours thinking you're a retard or something"

The blonde bowed her head and looked across to Santana who now had a deep frown etched on her face, both her hands gripping her fork and knife in frustrated balled fists. Brittany however just nodded and looked down at her plate, not feeling as hungry any more. She was used to her moms constant criticisms, they tended to come in waves so she just sat and took it, knowing the woman would say her piece and leave her alone eventually.

There was an awkward silence as her mom finished cleaning. Santana was playing with her food while Brittany had abandoned it completely. "Also, that godforsaken cat keeps taking things from the flowerbeds, I wish it would just die already, god knows it's certainly on it's way-"

"What the _hell_ is your problem?" Santana snapped. Santana's words echoed slightly around the room, Brittany kicked her under the table and shook her head. Confrontation was the last thing she wanted.

"Excuse me?" her mom looked taken aback. Her mom approached the dining table slowly, honing in on Santana. "I appreciate that you saved Brittany's life Santana," she said, scarily calm. "But I will not have you speak to me like that under my roof, do you understand?"

Santana just glared silently up at her. Brittany felt queasy; she hated fighting and raised voices and…everything.

"_Do you understand_?" her mom pressed.

"Perfectly" Santana shot back.

"Good, I think you two are finished eating"

Brittany looked to Santana and nodded, now was the time to leave. She was the first to leave the kitchen and into the hallway and was already hoping up the stairs on her good leg before Santana was walking up behind her.

Brittany got to her room and instantly slumped backwards onto her bed; she felt down again and just wanted to sleep. She cursed herself for forgetting to take her medication when she was down there.

Santana suddenly slammed her bedroom door shut with an angry force. It would have made Brittany jump bolt upright had she had the energy, instead her eyebrows shot up instead.

"Want to tell me what the fuck that was about?" Santana spat at her and began pacing in front of her dresser.

Brittany stared; she had never seen Santana so angry before. She knew Santana wasn't angry at her but at her mom, although she wasn't sure why. Sure Santana had been mad at people before, and protective of Brittany, but this seemed different…

"You shouldn't have spoken back to her like that" Brittany said annoyed.

"_I_ shouldn't have," Santana said throwing her arms up in the air in frustration. "She pretty much called you a retard Brittany, I won't-"

"_I know_ Santana," Brittany said, sitting up sharply. Santana was still pacing. "I don't need you to remind me, but I know my mother, you only made things worse"

Santana stopped dead in her tracks and looked at Brittany, brown eyes swirled with sheer anger with a hint of understanding. She just shook her head, frustrated, heaving.

Brittany didn't know why Santana was taking this so personally, she fell back slowly again, her eyes meeting the ceiling.

"I appreciate you sticking up for me but it's…pointless…" Brittany sighed more calmly.

She could hear Santana pacing again, her bare feet almost stomping against the floor. Brittany began to feel uncomfortable. Santana was _really _angry. The other girl began muttering things in Spanish under her breath as she walked up and down the room. She almost looked in her own little world.

"Fuck" Santana said, almost chastising herself. She shook her head. "Whatever you do, no te enfades" she said and began muttering other things in Spanish that Brittany couldn't make out.

Brittany lay there watching her fascinated but confused. "Santana?" she said softly.

That seemed to bring Santana out of her warpath.

"Uhm…are you OK?" Brittany asked warily.

"Huh?" Santana replied looking a little lost. She ran a hand through her black raven hair and sighed. "Yeah," she said, sounding calmer now. "Yeah I'm fine Britt," she said walking toward the bed and slumping backwards down onto it next to her. "I just…I can't be around your mom, I think I should just go home"

Brittany rolled her head to the side and blinked at her. "You can't be serious?"

Santana almost as if forcing herself not to look at Brittany, closed her eyes and spoke at the ceiling. "I just…she makes me angry…"

Brittany nudged her playfully, "You aren't the only one you know"

"No" Santana said seriously shaking her head at the ceiling. "You don't understand, she makes me so mad I feel like going down there and…and beating the crap out of her…I can't go down that road again…"

Brittany stared at Santana and for some reason her heart sped up. She swallowed thickly and treaded carefully with her next words. "What do you mean? Go down what road again?"

Santana opened her eyes quickly but didn't face her. She sighed heavily and shook her head. "Nothing"

"But you said-"

"We're going to my house later," Santana quickly interrupted her. "You can spend tonight and tomorrow at mine, I've got a bed, you can rest there, we'll get your meds and clothes, say goodbye to your dad and head off, OK? " Santana said moving her head to the side and looking at Brittany, she said it with finality that suggested Brittany didn't really have a choice in the matter.

Brittany would go with her anyway. "Whatever you want," she said quietly. "Santana you're acting really restless and disrupted since the argument with my mom, are you OK? Really?"

"What? Yeah I'm fine," she said, slowly sitting up. "Actually," she said looking around the room and clutching at her throat. "Do you have a drink?"

"I could go get you water from the bathroom or orange juice from downstairs if you want"

"No I was actually hoping for something a little stronger," Santana said, only half-joking.

Brittany frowned. "It's a little early for that don't you think?"

"Pfft, I just need something to take the edge off" Santana said, slumping back down onto the bed again.

"Edge off what?" Brittany asked curiously.

Santana rolled her eyes. "It's just an expression Britt"

They both fell into a silence. Brittany yawned feeling tired again, although her brain was still trying to work out what got Santana so riled up.

"We can just sleep till my dad comes back then, if you want to that is," Brittany suggested.

Santana moved closer to her. "You go to sleep if you want Britt, sorry I should have known you wanted to sleep I-"

"It's fine" Brittan smiled at her and reached out, tugging their pinkies together. That seemed to calm the other girl.

Time went by, Brittany wasn't sure how much but she felt herself slipping in and out of sleep.

Lying on Brittany's bed, Santana threw her leg over Brittany's thigh and took refuge at Brittany's side, her body nuzzling into the blonde's, her head resting on her shoulder. Brittany sighed as her heart raced again. Oh how she wanted this to be the norm. Santana laid her left hand over the blonde's chest and began tracing directionless patterns with her fingertip, running it over the top part of her breasts and up along her collarbone. Brittany closed her eyes contently, a lazy smile on her face as Santana's finger burned a trail on her skin. She was so happy. Santana made her so happy.

"Britt? You asleep?" Santana asked quietly.

Her body did it before her mind told her to; she rolled her head to the side and leaned down, pressing her lips softly against Santana's. It was a small, delicate kiss. She could taste the butter from Santana's lips, it made Brittany lick her lips and shudder at the contact. She pulled back quickly, it was only meant to be a small peck.

She stared into deep brown eyes. "No" she smiled even though she was panicking inside. That was the kind of thing couples do. They weren't a couple. She had never just initiated a kiss like that.

Santana's eyes were wide, she looked a little surprised, she blinked and licked her lips too, her face soon relaxed and she actually smiled a little back.

Brittany sighed in relief and turned her head back up to look at the ceiling.

"I was just wondering," began Santana. "About your mom last night. I've wondered for a while now but are you like, out?"

Brittany frowned at her ceiling, wishing for a moment it were a clear blue sky. "Uhm…no Santana, we're in my room" she giggled.

Santana chuckled at her side, her breath traveling across Brittany's skin. Santana leaned in closer to her ear. "No Britt, I didn't mean outside, but you are so cute"

Brittany blushed, as her hands felt clammy as they sat limply at her sides. Stupid. She was stupid.

"I meant like _out_," Santana continued, not lingering on Brittany's misunderstanding. "Out the closet that is"

"Oh," Brittany said in realization, feeling her ears tinge red. She was so stupid. "Uhm well…no? But yes I guess"

Santana chuckled again at her side; it was full of amusement and affection.

"No I mean like well, I've never really been in the closet to come out of it, and well even if I am in the closet the doors are wide open anyways so I don't see how it matters" Brittany said, she hoped she explained it as best she could.

"Brittany, you're too smart for me sometimes" Santana sighed in solace. "I just want to know if your mom and dad know about you being into girls too"

"Oh," Brittany said, she didn't know if Santana genuinely thought she was smart or if she was just trying to make her feel better. Nobody had ever called her smart before besides her dad. "My dad does, my mom…well…my dad says its best not to tell her"

"I see" Santana said, a tone of finality about the conversation.

"Why? Are you planning on telling them we're a couple?" Brittany joked. The air became uncomfortable as soon as it left her lips.

"Pfft, you wish" Santana grumbled.

"I do actually" Brittany sighed quietly.

There was a brief silence.

"Well," Santana began. "I already agreed to go out on a stupid date with you so…balls in your court…" she said casually.

Brittany frowned. "It's not stupid to me," she said firmly, "and I haven't decided what we're doing for our first date so I'll ask you when I ask you"

"Fine" Santana said shortly.

"Fine"

They fell asleep, Santana still clinging to Brittany for a few more hours. After they woke Santana was already keen to leave, eagerly packing some clothes for Brittany into a rucksack on her bed.

"Anything else you need?" Santana asked, throwing her toothbrush and shoes in.

"Uh…" Brittany tried to think. "My meds, but you really didn't have to get my things for me"

Santana shrugged, slinging the bag over her shoulder. "Your meds are in the kitchen right?"

Brittany nodded

"Then lets get out of here"

Not long after, Santana and Brittany were in the kitchen, Santana stuffing boxes of meds into the bag on her back. Brittany wanted to stop her, to say that she didn't need that many if she was just going over to Santana's for a day, she wanted to ask what was the rush. However like the many times before to keep the peace, and ultimately because she loved Santana so much she couldn't not be with her, she chewed the inside of her cheek and kept her mouth shut.

"Are you sure you're not staying?" came her fathers voice who had come in from the living room. "I'm glad you've made good friends Britt but ever since I came back, I've hardly seen you kiddo"

Brittany gave her dad an apologetic look as her stomach lurched with guilt. She had to go with Santana, she'd spent almost every day with Santana in and out width school, she couldn't even remember what life was like before Santana. She was addicted. She wondered if she carried Santana about as a necessity the same way Santana carried alcohol in her bag as a necessity. To take the edge off.

Santana stopped packing and turned to her dad, "I'm sorry -"

"James" he insisted.

"Right…James…I uh I'm sorry, you'll have her all week and next weekend to yourself, apart from Thursday because that's our Spanish night, I just…can't really sleep here"

Brittany frowned. Santana planned to ignore her for a full week? She didn't like it. Why? What was Santana going to be doing for a week and weekend without her?

"Oh," her dad sighed scratching the back of his head. "Well good, OK, I know you're both adults now, Britts bound to not be around the house as much, it's just she's my daughter and I'm her father, it's my job to be protective of her, you know? I'm sure your fathers the same" he smiled between them.

Brittany sucked in her breath as an awkward silence crept into the air.

"Uh," Santana began, she seemed a little thrown. She tugged the strap of the bag up a little higher before continuing "actually, I haven't seen my dad since I was little, he was a loser so…"

"Oh" her dad said, his smile fading. "Well you deserve better"

"Thanks for saying that, but I don't" Santana said remorsefully. "C'mon Britt let's go" she said and left the kitchen before either Brittany or her dad could object.

Later on in Santana's house they were both huddled up on the sofa watching a movie, the only light source in the room being the huge plasma TV on the wall.

"Gimme some popcorn you've been hogging it all night" Brittany said to the other girl sitting at her side with a large bowl of popcorn in hand. They had thick plaid covers splayed over them, Brittany felt so comfy and at home. Santana was her home away from home.

Santana drew her eyes slowly away from the screen and smirked to the side at Brittany. She lifted a piece of popcorn out and brought it over to Brittany's mouth, pressing it lightly against her lips.

"Eat" she gave a mischievous smile.

Brittany parted her lips and took the piece of popcorn into her mouth, she closed her lips allowing Santana's fingertips to graze them, and she then licked her lips, her tongue briefly poking against the other girl's fingers.

Santana was looking at her with such affection it was making her feel dizzy. Brittany gave a lazy smile and yawned.

"What time is it anyways?" she asked, bringing her hand up to stifle another yawn.

"Just after midnight" Santana smiled back and yawned herself.

"Can we just fall asleep here? I'm so comfy" Brittany said shyly.

"Sure Britt," Santana laughed a little and placed the popcorn down on the floor. "But don't you need to sleep elevated for your breathing or something?"

"Yeah but I don't get why I have to do that cause I always wake up on my side anyways, I mean everyone moves through the night, well except you"

"Except me?" Santana asked caught between amusement and confusion.

"Yeah," Brittany smiled, various memories of falling asleep with Santana filling her mind. "When you fall asleep on me, you don't move a muscle"

Santana looked breathless for a moment then looked down silently. "Oh," she said, eventually smiling a little. "So…you want to sleep here? Now?"

Brittany nodded uncertainly. "Only if you want to, that is"

"No, no," Santana insisted waving her head. "Yeah it's fine, just can we leave the TV on for background noise and light? I get scared being down here at night"

Brittany giggled. "Why?"

Santana shrugged a shoulder but wouldn't elaborate.

"OK, well, I'll protect you from the ghosts or monsters…or whatever…"

Santana rolled her eyes, a large grin on her face. "Thank you" she mouthed almost noiselessly.

Santana turned down the volume and lay down with her back to the blonde. Brittany lay down snuggled behind her, bringing the cover over them. She carefully lifted her hand and swept some of Santana's hair back. Santana sighed contently at her touch and Brittany couldn't help but smile. She wanted to fall asleep with Santana every night for the rest of her life; she knew that like she knew the grass was green.

She buried her face into Santana's neck, daring to place a small fleeting kiss to her skin there. Santana shifted her leg in response but said nothing. Feeling braver, Brittany wrapped her arms around Santana's waist and hugged her in as close as they could physically be.

"Is this OK?" Brittany asked quietly.

Santana didn't answer; instead she spun around so they were face-to-face, their breaths clashing in the small space between them. Santana smiled feebly and nodded, quickly laying her head down into the same crook of Brittany's neck.

"G'night Britt Britt" she mumbled against her skin.

"Goodnight Santana" Brittany said as yet again Santana quickly fell asleep in her arms, and the usual pounding of her heart keeping her awake just that little bit longer.

The next day, they both hadn't bothered to move much. They had eaten breakfast and lunch but still returned to lying on the sofa in their pajamas. Santana was lying with her head on Brittany's lap, her thumb tapping away furiously on her phone.

"Who are you texting?" Brittany asked happily as she carefully hovered her fingertips back and forth over Santana's forehead. She hoped this was OK. She wondered if Santana turned to mush under her touch the same way she did hers.

"Uh," Santana stuttered. Brittany smirked slowly, maybe she did. "Everyone"

A soft laugh left Brittany's lips. "Everyone?" she asked curiously.

"Yeah, you know, glee club," Santana shrugged, her eyes not leaving the handheld screen.

"Why?"

"I thought maybe we could have a house party"

"A house party?" Brittany asked amused. She wouldn't lie; hanging out with the glee club was something she wanted to do more often. "Am I boring you?" the blonde pouted.

"You could never bore me Britt," Santana smiled, albeit at her screen. "Puck texted me earlier though and he has some good stuff so I figured may as well have a party, you know not an actual party, just us glee club losers"

"Good stuff?" Brittany asked confused.

"Yeah, he's got some E so…"

"E?"

Santana rolled her eyes and sighed as she sat up. "Ecstasy Britt," she said impatiently, turning to face her.

Brittany shifted slightly. "So uhm, what does that do?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.

"What? E?" Santana asked, a wide smile slowly spreading across her face. "It just makes you feel, awesome I guess. Listening to music is awesome while high on E, makes your body sensitive to everything, makes you feel real chatty and giggly. That's about it. I _hear _having sex is even more awesome while on E, but I haven't tried it…"

"Oh," Brittany breathed out, not knowing why Santana was informing her of this. "Is that it? Is it dangerous?"

"Not really," Santana shrugged. "Basically makes you feel in love with everything and everyone."

Brittany laughed quietly and locked eyes with Santana. "I don't really need pills to make me feel like that," she admitted quietly, watching brown eyes panic a little over her words.

"Yeah well, some of us lesser people do," Santana shot back a little too defensively. "You want to try it?"

"Are you gonna do it?"

"Of course" Santana said nodding.

Brittany chewed her bottom lip in thought, weighing up her options. "Then yeah, OK, I'll do it if you are"

She'd do anything with Santana.

Santana smirked seeming pleasantly surprised at her. "By the way, I've invited Quinn, but I signed the text of as you since I don't think she'll believe me if she sees it from my number"

"Quinn, why?" Brittany asked, shocked.

Santana shrugged. "She's your friend, right?"

Brittany nodded. "Yeah but…she thinks glee club is social suicide, and you hate each other"

Santana shrugged again. "She can turn up or not, I couldn't care less."

Later on they got ready for their party, Brittany unsure as to why exactly they were even having one.

"Didn't you call Karofsky stupid for having a party on a Sunday?" Brittany said, as they both looked into Santana's dresser mirror, Brittany applying her blusher.

Santana just shrugged, doing her eyeliner. Brittany opted for a cute top and skinny jeans, leaving her hair naturally down and wavy. Santana wore a tight black dress.

"You look hot," Brittany noted as Santana looked smug at her through the mirror reflection. "But don't you think it's a bit much? I mean we aren't even going out anywhere"

Santana sighed. "Girl likes to look nice" she grinned.

Later, some of the Glee clubbers arrived, Puck brought in crates of beer and plastic guitars.

"Guitar hero party" he said to Brittany's questioning expression as he squeezed by her and headed toward the kitchen. Santana and Brittany joined him in the kitchen and he turned to them, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You gals ready for happy pills?"

"_Hell yes_," Santana said holding out her palm eagerly at him. Brittany mimicked her, and held hers out too.

He dropped one tablet into their hands each and quickly downed his own, knocking back a beer after. Santana grabbed the beer bottle off him and looked to Brittany.

"Ready?" she asked, smirking excitedly at her.

Brittany looked down at the tablet in her hand warily, it was small and round and bright pink. Other than that it looked like any normal pill. She closed her eyes and quickly threw it to the back of her throat, took the beer and let it wash the pill down her throat.

"I don't feel any different" Brittany stated simply afterwards as Santana took hers.

Puck chortled. "It takes a while chica"

"Oh" Brittany said in realization.

Rachel arrived with Kurt and Blaine. "Tell him Santana," Rachel said, pointing dramatically at Kurt.

"Kurt? You're gay" Santana informed the other boy.

"No, not _that_," Rachel said annoyed. "We were arguing in the car all the way over here what Barbra Streisand's best role is and I said that you would agree with me and say it's Funny Girl, right?"

Santana rolled her eyes. "Sure Rachel, but I don't really want to get involved in the gayest debate ever"

The rest of the glee club arrived minus Artie, something about homework. Brittany hoped that was the truth and that he didn't feel weird around them after what happened at Benny's. The drinks in the kitchen were soon running low, but surprisingly Santana had only had one.

"What's the point when we're gonna be high?" she said shrugging.

Her, Rachel, Brittany and Kurt were in the kitchen.

Rachel however was swaying and her words slurred. "Santana, I have to ask, is Brittany coming to New York with us? Because I've got to say, as team leader, that changes everything, we'll have to find a bigger place, a 4-bedroom apartment-"

"New York, what are you talking about?" Brittany asked, taking a drink of beer.

Santana groaned looking uncomfortable. "After graduation, our plan is to move to New York, cause you know for Rachel there's Broadway, for Kurt there's fashion things and for me there's…well…more bars"

Kurt rolled his eyes at her. "C'mon Santana," he drawled out "I'm sure there's something more substantial out there for you too."

"Oh," Brittany sighed, "I dunno," she felt uncomfortable about this conversation. Clearly they had all known each other longer and had plans, she didn't want to intrude or impose herself on them. The thought of living with Santana made her stomach flip in the most wonderful way though.

There was something of a mini-concert going on in the living room. Guitar hero was on loud and blaring from the TV as the rest were either dancing or chatting and drinking. Brittany went to the kitchen to get another drink, but someone entered behind her and distracted her.

Quinn was standing there smiling at her, wearing a white floral dress with white sandal shoes.

"You came!" Brittany beamed at her and rushed forward to hug her.

"Yes Brittany," she laughed a little, pushing her gently away. "I came, although to be completely honest I was worried when I seen I had a text from Santana, but then I seen it was by you and well…I just had to come, didn't I?"

"C'mon" she said excitedly as she grabbed the other blonde's hand and brought her through to the living room where everyone else was.

Quinn quickly let go of her hand and spotted Mercedes across the room. "I'm going to go talk to Mercedes for a little, do you mind?" she said over the loud music.

Brittany shook her head. "No, go ahead" she smiled, thankful that Quinn wouldn't feel like a total outsider here. Brittany slumped on the sofa next to Rachel.

"I wanna shot next", Brittany yelled to Puck and Sam as they were strumming on their fake guitars. "I've never played it before"

"Sorry chica, only pro's before hoe's" Puck laughed at her.

"Shut it Puckerman," came Santana's voice as she came in from the kitchen, drink in hand.

"Do you want me to move, Santana?" Rachel asked, her voice sounding hilariously uneven, even amongst the loud atmosphere in the room.

"No," Santana smirked and held her hand up, "I'm sure Britt won't mind if I…" she said as she sank down onto Brittany's lap sideways and wrapped her free arm around her neck.

Brittany swallowed as Santana's black dress rode up her thighs and her boobs practically heaved in front of her face. Santana's raven hair was all around her, she looked up and brown eyes were shining down on her. She was drowning. She wondered if this feeling was the E tablet beginning to kick in or if it was just Santana.

"Santana, how long does it take for the tablet to kick in?" Brittany asked curiously.

"About thirty, forty minutes tops Britt Britt, so any minute now" Santana said lovingly, her arm still wrapped around the blondes neck, her other holding her drink. She began twiddling some blonde locks around her finger at the back. It made Brittany's head tingle. Santana didn't seem to care that the way they were sitting…well…it wasn't how friends sat.

"Finn! We have to sing 'Don't Stop Believing', you know we earn 100% score for that song, even at the top difficulty setting" Rachel said cocking her head toward Santana and Brittany, as if they should somehow be impressed.

Santana just snorted. "Rachel you sure know how to impress a girl"

"Why thank you!" Rachel beamed back, oblivious to the sarcasm and staggered toward Finn who was handing her the other mic. Puck turned the volume up on the TV almost full blast as the song started and Puck and Sam had already started rocking out with their plastic guitars.

Brittany felt the space beside her on the sofa slump down. Quinn had come over and was saying something to her. She couldn't hear.

"I said thanks for inviting me," Quinn said with a shy smile, her eyes flickering to Santana sitting on her lap who was merely guzzling back her drink and sucking on the piece of lime floating at the top.

"You're welcome" Santana smirked, the green fruit popping out her mouth, her lips large and red with the citrus. Brittany just stared stupidly at her perfect face.

"You…invited me?" Quinn asked confused.

Santana just nodded. "Hey Quinnie, doesn't Britt look good tonight?" she said in a mocking tone. Santana was goading her. Brittany thought it was pointless because she still thought Santana was wrong about all of that. Was this the only reason she was this close to her tonight? To provoke Quinn?

And then Brittany saw it.

Quinn's eyes fell to the side and she nodded, unable to look Brittany in the eye. "Yes, you look very pretty Brittany"

Were her cheeks a little red?

"Pretty, pfft" Santana snorted as she began to run her hand over Brittany's forehead and she trembled at the touch.

Wow. Suddenly everything felt much more intense. Santana felt warmer on her lap and the hand now running through her hair set her whole head and heart alight. It was like Santana's touch was honey and Brittany was just lost within the thickness of it, she couldn't wipe the dopy grin from her face. Was this the pill? If so she loved it. It made Santana's electric touch ten times more awesome.

"Pretty _maybe_, but I think she looks sexy with her hair like this, don't you agree Quinn?" Santana husked as she swept blonde hair back, almost clapping her.

Brittany couldn't speak with Santana stroking her and sitting on her like this. The heat from Santana sitting on her, the hand running through her hair, the elated feeling she had in her stomach. The pill was awesome. She felt like foaming at the mouth from all these sensations.

"Uh…I think I'm going to go get a drink, excuse me" said Quinn as she departed toward the kitchen looking a little paler than before.

Santana couldn't have been right, could she?

Brittany suddenly started giggling and felt like talking about anything. Everything. She without so much as forethought wrapped one arm around Santana's waist, pulling her even closer and the other slowly up her leg, then her thigh. Her fingertips gliding up Santana's thigh, inching her dress up just a little bit more. Brittany smirked with smug amusement as Santana's lips curled into a small smile, her eyelids looking a little heavier than before. The blonde's stomach flipped wonderfully. Brittany could feel Santana's smooth skin so well, she could feel skin before but now she felt like she could feel every particle tense beneath her touch.

Brittany giggled again, although she wasn't sure what she found so funny. "You wanna play a game?" she whispered conspiratorially to Santana.

"What kind of game?" Santana whispered back, like they were in their own little world. Maybe they were.

"Tell me more stuff about yourself"

Santana finished her drink with one large gulp and clumsily dropped it to the floor behind her and started giggling along with Brittany. "This again, you already know my favorite color," she said, rolling her eyes a little.

"No I mean fun stuff, things I don't know, you tell me one thing then I'll tell you another cos it's fun, it can be anything. OK look, I'll start?"

Santana draped her other arm around Brittany and now clasped both her hands behind at the nape of her neck. Brittany could feel a constant heat from Santana's body perched on her own, it was melting her; was she sinking into this sofa? Maybe it was eating them alive. Maybe Brittany should tell it to stop.

Santana looked amused. Brittany guessed she had permission to play.

"OK, I don't like cotton candy, your turn" Brittany smiled at her, oblivious to the squealing of Rachel winning her perfect vocal record, or Tina (for some reason) crying in the corner.

"Hold up, you don't like cotton candy?" Santana threw her head back and laughed. "How can you _not_ like cotton candy?"

"I dunno," Brittany shrugged and smiled dopily at the other girl. Colors were so bright in here, had someone turned a lamp on? The walls were smiling at her. She loved everyone in this room, especially Santana though. "I feel like my heads lying to my stomach when I eat cotton candy cause it doesn't weigh like anything so…its like I'm telling my tummy it's gonna get food then it gets next to nothing. People shouldn't lie to their bodies like that."

"Brittany" Santana sighed shakily, inching her face closer and closer. Her sweet breath tickled her face, she smelled of coke and lime.

"Your turn," Brittany giggled, trying her best not to just kiss Santana right here and now.

Santana narrowed her eyes and looked up in thought. "I had a crush on the pink power ranger when I was little" she smirked.

Brittany giggled again "Boo, that's boring San, so did every queer female in existence….ok….uhm…my favorite animals are ducks but I also really like cats and dolphins"

"I've always wanted a dog," Santana said back quickly, looking like she was enjoying this game.

"Aww…if you were a dog you'd totally be a Chiwawa, all bark and no bite," Brittany teased, as Santana's black dress seemed to become brighter and swirly. It was so black though. She knew it was black before but now it was _really _black.

"I wish" Santana sighed for some reason.

"I used to cry because whenever I thought of Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears getting married, I didn't know who I was more jealous of" Brittany grinned, her hand stilling on Santana's thigh.

"That's tragic," Santana said with a wry smile. "Just tragic. Mhmm something you don't know…" Santana sighed in thought. "Oh, I know" she said as she leaned her head down by Brittany's ear.

Santana was laughing a little, as if amused by what she was about to say. "Whenever I'm horny, I just think about you and masturbate," Santana whispered in her ear.

The words seeped deliciously into Brittany's ear and slid down to pulsate between her legs. Wow.

"I know that sounds sad," said Santana leaning back and looking at Brittany with a more serious expression on her face. "To tell you the truth, I haven't been able to get off…if it's not you…"

Brittany swallowed thickly and her words came out hoarse. "What do you mean?" she practically whispered still, even though the room was full of noise. She needed to listen carefully now.

"When you and Artie went to Benny's I…I went out and got super drunk and tried it on with this much older woman, who by the way was not even _remotely_ attractive"

Brittany laughed a little but listened intently.

"Every fucking time there you are though, it's like my vagina can't forget you, I don't know, I think something's wrong with me and I should visit my doctor or something," Santana said seriously. "It happened that time in the club with that girl, I picked her out cause she sorta looked like you and it was working for a while but then as soon as we were foolin' around in the toilet stall, I got a good look at her eyes and they weren't bright fucking ocean blue like yours and it just totally killed the mood, I swear, the only way she could have killed the mood more was if she whipped out a dick," Santana snorted. "I mean, they're just eyes right? How pathetic is that?" she said unwrapping her arms from around the blondes neck and holding a hand out, shrugging at Brittany as if she should agree.

But she didn't agree. "It's not pathetic," Brittany said quietly "and I'm pretty sure there's nothing wrong with you," Brittany paused and chewed her lip. The tablet was making everything more intense. She could actually feel her lungs expand and contract against her ribs; she could almost taste Santana's sweat and perfume in her mouth. She felt like superman. "You wanna know a secret?" Brittany smiled coyly at Santana.

The Latina's eyes glinted and she nodded briskly.

"I think I'm the same, cause to be honest? I only went with Finn to that club to make you jealous, I only went to that party with Puck cause I knew you were going, and to be perfectly honest? I think I only said yes to Artie cause you were there, and I dunno if that makes me a bad person or…" she trailed.

Santana's lips twitched at the edges with the hint of a smile but Brittany didn't need her to smile to know the other girl was elated. She could see the relief and happiness in her shining dark eyes. Brittany needed to talk more, talking seemed like an awesome idea. Ideas were generally awesome things she thought, but the awesomest right now was talking.

"Your turn" the blonde smiled.

"Uh…one time at Halloween I dressed up as a duck"

"A duck!" Brittany beamed and patted Santana's thighs excitedly. "My favorite animal. Aww, you would look super sexy in a duck suit"

Santana gave her a bemused look. "Kinky" she quipped.

"I can't whistle" Brittany said.

"I can't ride a bike," Santana said just as quickly back.

"What! Oh my god Santana, we have to teach you. I'll teach you to ride a bike and you can teach me to drive, OK?" she grinned.

"OK Britt," Santana beamed back at her, leaning her head down in embarrassment and laughing into her shoulder.

"I prefer white chocolate to dark chocolate but I'm not racist or anything, honest," Brittany said seriously.

Santana's head came back up and looked down at her with an amused smirk. "What kind of chocolate am I?"

"You're not chocolate silly," Brittany giggled and tapped her fingertips on Santana's thigh, feeling every individual finger indent on the other girls skin. "You're like…a sweet smooth caramel"

"I'm hungry" Santana said lowly.

"I'm Brittany" the blonde replied.

Santana giggled and shook her head. "OK, you want to know a secret that nobody else knows about me? Not even Rachel, or Puck?" the other girl smirked, sensing the power in her own words.

Brittany nodded. She needed more of Santana. With every touch and every piece of information she got she felt a rush from it. She was addicted to the feeling.

"You repeat this to anyone? You're dead by the way"

Brittany nodded again. "I promise"

Santana leaned closer so their faces were inches apart, she licked her lips and whispered to Brittany, "I like to read poetry". Santana leaned back and looked down embarrassed.

Brittany blinked at her for what felt like hours but was really just a second, and then an eruption of amusement exploded from her stomach and out through her mouth. She could not stop laughing.

"OK, Blondie you know what? I know I shouldn't have told you" Santana scowled, only looking a little annoyed.

"It's just-" Brittany paused and tried to steady her giggling, she placed a hand over her chest and tried to cough it out. "You were so serious, I thought you were gonna tell me you were part of the CIA or something"

Santana rolled her eyes. "I know it's stupid," she mumbled.

"I don't think it's stupid, I think it's cute" Brittany said lovingly, wrapping both arms around Santana's waist, just to pull this wonderful heat closer to her.

Santana looked down at her movement and quirked an eyebrow. "Cute? Poetry isn't cute"

"Maybe you should read me your favorites sometime" Brittany suggested.

"I know my favorites off by heart actually," Santana said, smiling bashfully.

"Will you tell me them?" Brittany asked, her heartbeat feeling all out of rhythm. "Please?"

Santana looked away in thought. Her eyes came back to Brittany with a content but sorrowful look on her face. "Maybe…one day…" she said still smiling a little.

It was a promise.

"I like when you're like this" Brittany said truthfully, squeezing Santana's waist.

"High? A bit drunk?" Santana smirked.

Brittany shook her head "Mhmm, no, not quite," she pondered what it was exactly that was different, "It's just whenever you take substances-"

Santana snorted and rolled her eyes.

"You seem more calm and…open…you don't seem as angry at everything"

Santana merely nodded in agreement.

"I hope one day you can be yourself without having an excuse to be" Brittany said quietly.

Santana almost physically recoiled at the words and frowned. She sighed, "I need a smoke," she mumbled as she got up and headed toward the kitchen. Brittany suddenly felt cold. She didn't linger on Santana too long; the ecstasy was making her feel too happy. She got up and hi-fived Mike and made her way over to Kurt and Blaine who were squished together on a one-seater.

"Everything…everything is just awesome don't you think?" she said dreamily at them. Secretly she was envious. They were holding hands and talking and being a couple. Probably making plans. Brittany didn't have any plans.

"Uh…I think you've had one too many, don't you think?" Blaine said with a sympathetic smile and tilt of his head. His hair was so gelled Brittany thought she was going to slip in it. So bright.

"I haven't been drinking" Brittany stated.

Kurt and Blaine gave each other this look that screamed they didn't believe her.

"Kurt by the way, I need to tell you," Brittany said quickly with an overwhelming urge to just kiss and hug him right now. "I think you're the cutest guy in here, like seriously, you are so cute, you look like a human Pinocchio and you're just…awesome…I think you're the most unicorn of all" she said as she leaned over the arm rest and kissed him clumsily on the cheek.

Kurt looked taken aback and humbled. "I have no idea what you just said, but thank you Britt!" he enthused, clasping his hands together.

Brittany stumbled through people and colors and objects. She seen everything and everyone with such clarity, but nothing caught her attention for more than a second. She went into the kitchen. Santana wasn't here; she figured she was out the back still smoking. Her heart panged horribly when she wasn't with Santana; she just needed to be with her all the time. She was like a dog without its lead. Quinn was standing in the kitchen alone, sipping some sort of tequila. She looked so out of place.

Brittany skipped over to her. "Hey you," she smiled.

"Hi" Quinn smiled. "Is something wrong?"

"Nope" Brittany grinned happily and clicked her tongue. "Nothings wrong, life is just awesome right now actually, everything is pretty awesome," she said twirling on the spot with her hands clasped behind her back.

Quinn's eyes narrowed at her. "Brittany, are you drunk again?" she asked looking a little amused.

Brittany giggled and shook her head. "Nope. Me and Puck and Santana and…oh no that's it I think, we all took happy pills"

Quinn's face dropped. "Happy pills? _Of course_, that in Santana-speak is E," she said rolling her eyes and setting her drink down on the counter.

"Cool, how did you know that?" Brittany asked cocking her head to the side. "Oh my god, you're psychic right?" she whispered and looked around to make sure nobody could overhear.

"No Brittany," Quinn said firmly and folded her arms looking cross. "I just know that Santana's an idiot. My god, why do you let her manipulate you like this?"

"If Santana and I manipulate it's really none of your business Quinn" Brittany deadpanned.

"What?" Quinn frowned and looked confused. "Look, all I'm saying is…she's so irresponsible…I don't know what you see in her" she said almost with sad tone. "Seriously – what is it about her? Why _her_?" Quinn continued looking more and more incensed. "She treats you like crap half the time, she was so mean to you when you first met, she's a drunken drug-obsessed mess and frankly she only cares about herself, seriously why? Why her?"

Brittany stared at Quinn dumbfounded. The inflection of her 'why her' question sounded more like 'why not me'. Brittany swallowed, maybe Santana was right. She didn't know how she felt about it, now wasn't a good time to realize all this, because right now everything felt awesome, even the way Quinn was getting angry over her and Santana.

"Santana and I…we…we're complicated" Brittany sighed. "You can't speak about her that way though," she said firmly, feeling the need to defend Santana. "You don't know her like I do"

"Whatever you say Brittany" Quinn sighed in defeat.

Santana's sarky voice emerged from behind them. "Quinn, you're drinking, you sure you can do that with a kid on the way? Oh wait, you're not knocked up, I always lose track," she came to stand beside Brittany and leaned against the counter.

Quinn huffed silently and looked between them, she shoved by them both taking her drink with her and back into the living room. Suddenly a loud bellowing choir of voices started singing, Santana and Brittany walked to the threshold and saw the entire room singing and swaying along to one of the songs in the game. Mike was body popping, Blaine and Kurt were (what Brittany could only call) twirling and Rachel, mic in hand, was spinning and jumping up and down on the spot, her face bright red and her eyes watery. She definitely had one too many. Brittany giggled feeling like she could hear the music so well, she could _feel_ the music. It pounded brilliantly in her ears. The song ended and a new one came on, Puck and Sam started playing their plastic guitars pretending to be rock stars.

"Oh my god, this song, now this song," Rachel said and raised a finger "might I add that this song, I am flawless at, OK? Stevie Nicks herself would be brought to a standing ovation if-"

"Shut it Berry and just sing" Santana interjected, raising her hands to her mouth and shouting toward Rachel who was on the other side of the room.

"OK! See that Finn?" Rachel shot at the large boy who was standing awkwardly holding a non-alcoholic beer. "My audience awaits, I don't need you," she said as she jumped up on the sofa just in time for the intro.

"_Loving you  
>Isn't the right thing to do<br>How can I  
>Ever change things that I feel?"<em>

Brittany, still feeling on cloud nine, put her hand on Santana's shoulder. "You wanna dance?" she asked over the noise.

Santana turned to her and smirked, looking just as relaxed. "You can't dance Britt, your legs remember?"

Brittany shrugged then grinned at her. "So? We'll just sway on the spot again," she said simply as she held a hand out.

Santana rolled her eyes but in a bashful manor as she took Brittany's hand and wrapped her other arm around Brittany's neck. Brittany let out a breath as the tingles engulfed her hand and eventually her body. They just swayed there slightly as the rest of the room jumped about like idiots.

"_If I could  
>Maybe I'd give you my world<br>How can I  
>When you won't take it from me?"<em>

Suddenly, as if the entire group here were on the same wavelength, all started belting out the chorus. Brittany felt giggles erupt in her stomach as Santana stood back a bit and sang at the top of her voice too, only to be drowned out by the rest of them.

"_You can go your own way!  
>Go your own way<br>You can call it another lonely day  
>Another lonely day<br>You can go your own way!  
>Go your own way"<em>

Brittany sighed as Santana's eyes were bright and sparkly, her cheeks just a little red, as the biggest smile was formed on her face. She was beautiful when she was happy. She was always beautiful, but especially when she was happy. Suddenly the pounding of Brittany's heart distracted her and she felt it everywhere. She needed Santana.

"_Tell me why  
>Everything turned around?<br>Packing up  
>Shacking up's all you wanna do<br>If I could  
>Baby I'd give you my world<br>Open up  
>Everything's waiting for you"<em>

"C'mon," she said to Santana and pulled her by the hand through the kitchen and out to the hall.

Santana was still laughing a little. "Where are you taking me Britt?" she asked, sounding a little out of breath.

Brittany didn't answer and ignoring her pain (or perhaps not feeling it) she walked briskly up the stairs normally instead of hopping, dragging Santana along behind her. Instead of heading toward the bedroom, she bypassed it and went into the bathroom. Santana's sounds of confusion trailing behind her. She quickly flicked the lights on, let Santana go in front of her and turned around and the shut the door. She locked it and turned around slowly, puffing slightly from their quick escape from downstairs. Santana was in the middle of the room staring at her, lips bright red and puffy, eyes relaxed, legs perfect…

"You," Brittany said lowly. She felt something animalistic, primal almost, rise inside her like hot steam.

"Something wrong Britt?" Santana smirked but looked genuinely confused.

Brittany shook her head, her back flat against the door, almost as if she had to hold her body back from lunging at the other girl. "I just wanted to be alone with you" she admitted, her voice at least two octaves lower than it was a few minutes ago.

"Sooooo…" Santana drawled out still confused, "you took us to the bathroom?" she said scrunching up her face, somehow managing to sound amused yet not amused. She was so cute.

"You made me a promise, remember?"

Santana looked up as if trying to remember.

"Before my accident, you said we could take a bath together, for our arrangement"

Santana's features became sly as realization swept over her features. "Ah, but we don't have an arrangement anymore, remember?"

Brittany walked toward Santana slowly, stopping just in front of her. "I know but -"

"And aren't we supposed to be taking things slow, too?"

"Didn't stop us from scissoring on my bed" Brittany stated.

Santana's eyebrow arched. "True" she conceded. "Still I think we-"

Brittany cut her off by crashing her lips onto Santana's as she wrapped her arms around the smaller girl and pulled her in with such force. Their mouths opened instantly as their teeth and tongues clashed, fighting for dominance. Brittany swirled her tongue just a bit deeper and licked behind Santana's teeth, the other girl moaned and shuddered against her. The blonde smirked as she pulled away, catching her breath. Ecstasy definitely made kissing better, she felt her heart pound and her toes curl and her knee's weaken.

Santana stared back at her, swaying slightly and with hooded lids. "I guess I'll run our bath then" she said, her voice all out of sorts. She walked over to the bath and leaned over, turning the hot and cold taps.

The music from downstairs sounded so faint here, all Brittany could hear now was the pounding of her own heart and the gushing of the water now filling the tub.

Brittany walked over to Santana who turned to face her, she looked a little uncertain.

"Here, let me," Brittany said quietly putting her hands on the edge of Santana's dress, ready to hike it up with the other girls permission. The fabric was so gentle in her hands, Santana's skin so smooth grazing her fingers. Santana licked her lips and nodded. It was weird, Brittany had felt a rush to just have the other girl as soon as possible but now that they were here and alone, she just wanted to take her time. She pulled Santana's dress up and over her head slowly, revealing Santana's naked torso and small black panties.

Brittany's breath caught in her throat, "You're beautiful" she confided quietly to the other girl.

Santana's response was to reach forward and hook a finger into the waist of Brittany's jeans, pulling her closer. Brittany gulped as her clothed chest brushed against Santana's bare breasts. Santana looked up at her, a twinkle in her eye and then looked down. Santana undid her button and slowly, oh so excruciatingly slowly, pulled the zip down on Brittany's pants, each inch making a popping sound.

Brittany let out a breath that blew away some hair on Santana's face.

Santana looked back up and smirked knowingly. She pulled at the sides and slid the blonde's jeans off to around her knees; Brittany quickly stepped out of them. Anticipation flowing through her, she quickly got rid of her top and unclasped her bra.

Santana's smile faded slightly as she stared at Brittany's body with appreciation. Brittany did the same with Santana. It was shame she thought, she had just realized that in their quick hook-ups she hadn't really gotten the chance to appreciate Santana, she hadn't even touched her breasts before or stroked her stomach or…

"I want to kiss every inch of your body," Brittany said shakily.

Santana looked just as flushed as she did and chewed her bottom lip. "I don't know Brittany," she began lowly, "that might take a while" she smirked. She walked over to the bath as the water was nearing the top and turned off the taps. She checked the water with her hand. Flicking her hair to one side she looked back at Brittany. "Is this OK?"

Brittany walked forward in a daze, not believing how awesome everything was. She checked the water temperature too. Perfect. Everything was perfect. She pulled down her underwear without any reservations and smirked as Santana's eyes fell to her center. Brittany looked expectantly at Santana and she got the message. She too, slowly slid her panties down and let them pool at her feet on the floor.

Santana held out her hand toward Brittany. "You first," she smiled gently. Brittany couldn't help but grin as she took Santana's hand; she felt happiness explode all inside her. "Careful" Santana said as Brittany took one step over the edge and into the tub. "Watch your step"

Brittany just gushed internally at how worried she sounded. She swung her other leg over and sat down at the far end of the bath.

"Woah," Brittany said as she was submerged in warm water, it swamped and swirled around her body. "Does Ecstasy make everything feel awesome? Cause this water feels…woah…" she sighed unable to find the words.

Santana just giggled as she too stepped over and sat down in the middle of the bath, squeezing herself in-between Brittany's legs. They sat there for a moment smiling bashfully at one another.

"Now what?" Santana asked looking shy as her eyes trailed down Brittany's body under the ripples of the water.

"Nothing," Brittany giggled, a relaxed grin on her face as the warm water heated and relaxed her muscles. She leaned her head back against the top end of the bath. "We just…relax…"

"OK" Santana said as her hands traveled through the water and met each of Brittany's calves. Santana's face contorted itself into amusement as her hand ran over Brittany's leg, she quirked an eyebrow.

It took a second before Brittany realized what Santana found funny, and now was feeling embarrassment tinge her cheeks and creep up her spine. Her legs were unshaven.

"I see what's going on here, you just wanted me in here so you can stab me to death with this stubble" Santana poked fun.

Brittany skewed her mouth. "Uhm well, since the accident I've kinda found it hard to take showers, they're exhausting and well I'm not in cheerios anymore so I kinda just…let my legs be…" Brittany mumbled.

Santana just stared intensely at Brittany a small smirk plying her lips, Brittany found herself getting lost in the fiery intensity of the longing seeped within those eyes. Santana reached back and shifted back to the other end of the bath, Brittany wondered what she was doing as the other girl was shifting through bottles that sat at the far end of the bath. Brittany chortled a little when Santana came back to her position, a bar of soap and a razor in hand.

"Raise your leg" Santana said simply and patted the side edge of the bath.

Brittany just stared at her, her heartbeat speeding up just a little. "You…want to shave my legs?" she giggled a little.

Santana merely shrugged a shoulder and looked at her expectantly.

With her heart suddenly pounding again and her stomach churning with elation Brittany raised her left leg up out of the water and draped it at the side. Santana lathered up the bar of soap in her hands and ran her hands over the lower part of Brittany's leg, she cupped under her calf, her touch tickling Brittany in wonderful ways. She wasn't even supposed to have great feeling in this leg, yet it stiffened at the other girls touch.

"I'd do anything for you," Santana said quietly as her eyes, dark and hooded, ran the blade slowly up her leg.

"Ugh," a moan escaped Brittany's throat and she wasn't even sure why. She shouldn't find this a turn on, but it was. Her heart was pounding, as was the slick flesh between her legs submerged in warm water.

Santana stopped just below her knee and looked at her with an amused smirk. Santana had a dark look in her eye as she ran the blade up another part of Brittany's leg, leaning down and blowing over the wet skin.

"God," Brittany sighed as goosebumps erupted all over her skin and her spine tingled. She rolled her hips up out of the water to try relieve some of the tension but it was no use, the water just lapped about her lazily.

Santana spent ten minutes continuing her (what Brittany could only describe as) torture. She'd occasionally lean down and plant a kiss on her leg and as she did Brittany's right leg, she insisted that Brittany place it on her shoulder, allowing the Latina to kiss around her ankle as she scraped the blade upwards over her skin, removing the hair with ease. Brittany didn't know if it was the ecstasy, but she was hyper aware of everything Santana had to offer, from the burrow of her frown in concentration to the times where she licked her lips, to when her eyes fell between Brittany's legs and looked up bashfully to blue eyes. Brittany could do nothing but watch Santana in awe as her body thrummed beneath her touch and care.

"C'mere" Brittany said, feeling in a trance. She was high and she was so turned on she was sure Santana merely had to touch in-between her legs and she'd crumble. "Turn around and lie back on me"

Santana complied with a little hesitation. Both of them sighed as Santana's' wet body wriggled itself up and on Brittany's. The blonde sucked in some air between her lips as her hard nipples brushed the wet skin on the Latina's back and as her ass slid seamlessly up Brittany's lower stomach.

"Fuck," Brittany sighed as her whole body was on fire, a fire that couldn't be put out by this water. She could feel Santana's heartbeat through her back, and the warmth of her body on her own. Santana rested her head back on Brittany's shoulder and craned her head round to plant a small kiss on Brittany's jawline.

"This is nice," said Santana lowly, her voice sounding as shuddery as Brittany's body felt.

"Hmmm," Brittany managed to hum back, a note of bliss rather than an actual response to the statement. Brittany leaned into Santana's hair and breathed all of her in. With her heart hammering in her throat and between her legs, she ran her hand up Santana's wet abs and carefully over Santana's hardened nipples.

"Oh Brittany," Santana sighed, her head digging back further into her as her back arched. The sound was wonderful, as was the accompanying feeling of Santana's body quivering over her own. Brittany seriously thought she was going to orgasm from pleasuring the other girl alone. Santana gasped as Brittany cupped one of her breasts, it felt so perfect and full in her hand. She squeezed and kneading both breasts, eliciting dark delicious sounds from the other girl.

Brittany nuzzled into Santana's neck and began whispering sweet nothings in her ear. She wasn't even sure what she was saying.

"Please," Santana whimpered, as goosebumps traveled down her neck from where Brittany's breath tickled her. "Fuck me, fuck me…fuck me Britt…please"

Brittany groaned against her ear, rolling her center up into Santana's ass, and with a feeling a dark desire to hear the other girl whine and beg more, started toying with her. She trailed her hot wet tongue around the ridge of Santana's ear and smirked when the other girl shuddered more.

"You like that huh?" Brittany grunted into her ear.

Santana nodded feebly, her body writhing around on top of her.

Brittany had no idea where this animalistic want came from; it was a sexual side of her she never knew existed before she met Santana. She made slow circles around the silver stud of Santana's earing, tonging it and flicking her lobe occasionally.

"Ohhh…Brittany…" Santana sighed wantonly.

"You want me to fuck you from behind like this?" Brittany spoke into her ear, somehow believing it would go directly to her heart, her brain, her sex.

Santana nodded frantically.

Brittany trailed her hand down Santana's front and sank her hand beneath the water.

"Wow," they both breathed at the same time.

Brittany moved her fingers through Santana's slick folds with ease. The Latina was a whimpering mess on top of her. Santana felt different, her sex was so soft beneath the water, engorged with want.

"Look how ready you are for me," Brittany husked as she thrust two fingers upwards into the other girls heat.

"Ugh…" Santana shuddered, her insides almost vibrating against Brittany's fingers.

Brittany began to pump slowly up into Santana, allowing her fingers to go slow and deep. She wanted to drag this out; she wanted Santana in this state for as long as possible. She wrapped her other arm around Santana's waist to steady her. The water lapped and swished lazily at the movement of their bodies, and gushed at the pressure of Brittany entering in and out of the girls willing folds. Slow and deep. Up and down they grinded. Brittany finding this position to be perfect; teased Santana's clit with her thumb.

Santana jerked. "Fuck Brittany" she moaned loudly, her voice bouncing and echoing all around the walls. "You are so good, so…god you're the best…" her voice hitching every time Brittany went further up into her. She was beginning to pant instead of breathe.

Brittany smirked, as an awesome shudder rippled low in her own stomach. She was tingling everywhere. "You like me inside of you? Filling you up so perfectly" she grunted, her breath puffing away some of Santana's hair.

"Shit Brittany, I'm going to come" Santana began to shudder and jerk, her legs trembled and shut together quickly, trapping Brittany's hand between them. Brittany continued to press up into her and gripped her tightly as she came undone on top of her, rubbing circles over her sensitive clit, dragging her orgasm out. Santana's insides quivered and hugged her fingers tightly inside of her. Santana eventually came down and turned to jelly on top of her, her breasts heaving up and down, breathing so hard.

Brittany just nuzzled into her neck, kissing fervently and licking some sweat away, tasting the other girls skin in her mouth. She trailed the tip of her nose up Santana's cheek and started to press soft kisses onto Santana's clammy temple.

Her stomach spinning in euphoria and her heart threatening to burst out of her skin, words of affection tumbled form her mouth before she could stop them. She inhaled. "I love you so much Santana" she sighed against the other girl's temple, her lips sticking to wet skin.

"I love you too" Santana's breathless voice whispered back.

Brittany's heart stopped, her eyes popped wide open as the high feeling in her stomach strangely evaporated. The shock of her own admission panicked her, but then Santana's reply washed over her and she was literally stunned. Maybe she made it up in her head?

Bringing her trail of thoughts back to reality, Santana suddenly clamoured ungraciously off her and stood up, water cascading all around her and practically stumbled out the bath, water dripping all over the floor.

"What's wrong?" Brittany's voice was small, barely above a whisper. Her throat felt so tight and dry.

Santana whipped her head round, the wet tips of her hair shooting toward her. "We're not making any sense," Santana said as she pulled up her underwear and quickly threw her dress over her wet body. "It's just the E talking, you're not making any sense and I'm not making any sense, OK?" she said shakily.

Brittany tilted her head to the side. She sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than Brittany. Her body and brain and heart felt overwhelmed with a million feelings right now.

"Please don't leave me," Brittany said, her voice uneven. She felt like crying but the drugs wouldn't let her.

Santana had already stomped toward the door, unlocked it and slammed it shut again.

Brittany a while after found herself walking around the house upstairs, looking frantically for Santana. Her jeans were sticking to her still wet skin and she didn't even bother to put her top back on, she walked about in her bra, water droplets still running down her body. She couldn't find Santana anywhere; she didn't want to go downstairs like this. Not knowing what to do or how she was feeling she made her way to Santana's room, closed over the door and slumped down on the bed, inhaling the familiar scent on the bed sheets. Strange feelings of sadness and elation swirled in the pit of her stomach and she felt kind of ill. Maybe she should sleep and everything would be better and make sense in the morning.

"Brittany? Are you in here?" a soft voice floated to her from the doorway.

Quinn.

"Yeah" Brittany managed to grumble against the covers, she turned around unwillingly and sat up crossing her legs on the bed. "Come in"

"Brittany?" She said questioningly after seeing her appearance, her voice laced with worry. "Are you OK? Why are you wet?" she said as she rushed and came to Brittany's side, sitting down beside her.

Brittany's' lower lip trembled but she still somehow couldn't cry, she couldn't even speak, at least she didn't think so.

"Oh Brittany, you shouldn't have took that drug" Quinn sighed sadly, sensing something was wrong. She held out her hand and swept Brittany's wet hair away.

Brittany opened her mouth to say it wasn't really the pill but found herself incapable of articulating anything. She did feel scared and sad, yet happy and bouncy. She also felt on edge, as if something was about to happen, but she needed to sleep. Finally her throat opened and she spoke.

"Quinn, can you stay here with me till I fall asleep, please?" she mumbled pathetically.

"Of course" Quinn said quietly back.

Brittany suddenly felt Quinn's thumb on her chin, felt her head be slowly coaxed to the side and felt soft lips on her own. She held her breath and shut her eyes, unsure what was happening. The lips on her own were rigid but willing, and they weren't Santana's. Quinn pulled back almost as quickly as she came forward. For some reason, perhaps not wanting the empty feeling in her stomach to plummet to new depths, Brittany pressed her lips more firmly onto the unfamiliar ones ghosting her own. Maybe everything would make sense in the morning.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Well I hope this distracts some people from recent spoilers. Oh the song used in this is revelry by Kings Of Leon :)**

The further she pressed her lips onto the other girls, the more she realized the sinking feeling of her heart and the emptiness in her stomach wasn't fading, if anything it was getting worse. Quinn's lips were soft but far too little, they didn't cushion and consume her own like Santana's did. Quinn smelled of alcohol and cinnamon, there was no faint smoke, no coconut – no Santana. She didn't make her tingle like Santana did.

She pulled away still feeling in a trance, she was so nervous her stomach was twisting in knots and she wasn't even sure why. She didn't feel safe.

"I'm sorry," Quinn gasped quietly, clasping her hand to her mouth. "I have no idea why I did that"

Brittany just looked to the floor, she was sweating and her head was hurting. "Quinn," she felt her voice tremble. "Sorry I shouldn't have kissed you back, and I think you're smart enough to know that Santana and me…" she trailed not even knowing how to finish that sentence.

"So it's true then?" Quinn asked. "What they say around cheerios?"

"What is it they say around cheerios?" Brittany asked, mad that Quinn would listen to idle gossip, she was not really that interested in the answer though. She wished this sadness would go away, it was a physical kind of sadness, she could feel it sting the pit of her stomach. She focused on the floor. It was starting to spin.

"You're gay and you and Santana are seeing each other"

"No and no,' Brittany said. "Santana and me aren't a couple if that's what you're asking and I'm not gay, I'm bisexual" Brittany said firmly. Her eyes went wide as she said it. There was an odd silence. "Whoah…" she breathed.

"What?" Quinn asked.

Brittany finally looked at her; she looked uncomfortable with Brittany's admission. Brittany however felt different. She felt like a weight she didn't know that had been on her shoulders had just been lifted.

"I…I just…I've just realized…I've never said that out loud before," Brittany mumbled in thought. Bisexual. It sounded so natural coming off her tongue, she felt comfortable with the label completely. It was a part of her, albeit a small part, but a part nonetheless and she finally gave it name.

A little of her sadness lifted.

"What are you?" Brittany asks Quinn curiously.

"I'm not anything," Quinn says with a disgruntled look. "I told you I shouldn't have did that, it was a mistake, and if you tell anyone you'll regret it, OK?"

Brittany blinked at the other girl as her body instinctively leaned back away from her. "Are you threatening me?" Brittany asks, her voice feeble.

"No," Quinn sighed sadly. "No Brittany I'm not, I'm sorry I need to go, please lets just pretend this never happened, OK?" the other blonde said as she got up from the bed.

"Quinn," Brittany called out to the other girl as she reached the door. She clutched at her stomach, she felt like she was going to throw up.

"Brittany? Are you OK?" Quinn walked back to her concerned. "Wait here, I'll go get Santana"

Brittany winced as she went to tell her not to, Santana was the last person she wanted to see right now, but Quinn had already hurried out the room. She slumped down and knelt on the floor, her head was spinning, she felt sick but more worryingly she had this constant anxiety, it was spinning in her stomach and making her think something really bad was about to happen. Maybe she was just upset with Santana; maybe it was all her fault. No, it _was_ all her fault.

"Brittany?" came Santana's worried voice as she came into the room a while later. She knelt down on the floor beside her and put a hand on her shoulder, Brittany wanted to shrug it off but didn't really have the energy. "What's wrong?"

"Don't feel too good," Brittany muttered, doing her best to just concentrate on the floor and ignore the horrible feelings in her stomach.

"Shit," Santana hissed. "Quinn," she spoke assertively to the other girl at the door opening. "Go tell the rest the party is over, they've got school tomorrow anyway, they'll thank me, but tell Puck to get his ass up here now"

"Uh…OK" Quinn said uncertainly and headed back out.

"Brittany," Santana said softly "I'm so sorry, all this is my fault I should have never gotten you to-"

"I decided to take the pill Santana, you didn't shove it down my throat, so that's not your fault. Everything else? All your fault" Brittany said flatly and raised her head to glare at Santana who was now kneeling in front of her.

The other girl opened her mouth then quickly shut it again.

"Did you guys invite me up for a threesome or what?" Puck grinned dopily as he came in, followed by a curious bouncing Rachel. "Nah, just kiddin', San's like my sis"

"Puckerman, was that E clean? Brittany doesn't look too good," Santana snarled at him.

"Huh?" he seemed confused as he dropped to the floor beside Santana and was looking at Brittany like some sort of alien. "No man, that stuff was pure and clean. Did you drink much Britt?"

"N-no. One beer" Brittany grumbled, trying to use as little concentration talking and more trying not to throw up. She bowed her head down as the faces in front of her became blurry. She was starting to shiver. She felt Santana's warm and clammy hand sweep away her hair and gently press against her forehead.

"She feels hot but she's shivering, crap, this isn't good, we need to call an ambulance or get you to A and E, call your parents or something"

"I agree" Rachel said nervously from the side. She suddenly looked a lot more sober.

"No" Brittany said sharply, bringing her head up and shooting them all the most serious face she could. "Santana," she mumbled weakly "you know what my mom is like, she would never let this go, my dad would just be so disappointed I can't…I can't let…you won't…" she was finding it hard to talk as her breathing became rapid. She was panicking.

"OK, OK, calm down Britt, we won't tell anyone, OK?" Santana said her voice laced with fear. Santana had her hand behind Brittany's neck and was simply stroking back and forth across her nape. It was sort of calming the storm in her stomach right now.

"Maybe it's a bad trip?" Santana said to Puck sounding confused, it came out more like a question than a statement.

"Nah, you can't really get bad trips from E, well you can but it ain't common. Besides, even if you do, worst you get is paranoia and shit, nothing like this" he said scratching his Mohawk.

"I feel like something bad is gonna happen" Brittany mumbled, rocking slightly as Santana continued her stroking behind her head.

"Mhmm," Puck hummed in thought still seeming unconvinced. "You feel sad?"

"Yeah," Brittany managed out. "But that's got nothing to do with the drugs and everything to do with Santana" she added bitterly.

Santana stopped her stroking as an awkward silence descended on them. Santana resumed a moment later and didn't say anything.

"Uh…" Puck continued, clearly uncomfortable. "Is she on any other meds?" he directed at Santana.

"Well yeah, she's been on meds since the accident"

"What kind of meds?"

"Uh, Ibuprofen painkillers," she retracted her hand and held out her fingers counting them out. "Antibiotics and Fluoxetine, I think that's about it."

Brittany's stomach clenched harder as a vibration of happiness shuddered through her. It was gone as quickly as it came but it was nice. Santana had memorized all the medication she was taking, when she herself didn't know the proper names or anything.

"Well duh chica, there's your problem" Puck said. "Man you're stupid, she's got a whole cocktail of drugs in her system"

Santana seemed to turn pale. "I…I…didn't think"

Brittany was annoyed Santana was getting blamed; Brittany had always been treated like she wasn't responsible for her own actions when she was. She wasn't stupid.

"_Clearly" _Puck said. "I think you should tell someone but if you really wanna wait this out just drink plenty of water, flush it out your system. You should probably sleep too."

"OK,' Santana sighed looking a little relieved. "Thanks Puck," she said patting his shoulder.

"Quinn's still down the stairs," Rachel spoke suddenly and shifted her eyes between them. "If you want, her me and Puck can clean up down there? Well, Puck and Quinn can clean up and I'll coordinate their efforts"

Brittany felt a smile tug her lips; she could never quite imagine Rachel cleaning mess.

"Thanks," Santana said at her quietly. "Remember to-"

"Lock the door on the way out, I know" Rachel smiled, finishing her sentence for her. "Come on _you_," she added, grabbing Puck by the bicep and pulling him up and out of the room.

"Stay there, I'm going to change and get you some clothes to sleep in, OK?" she spoke, her reassuring voice floating right through her ears and into her heart. "I'll be right here"

Brittany felt like she didn't want to be alone, or at least her stomach was telling her it was a very bad idea, but Santana was still in the room. Brittany lifted her head meekly and watched the other girl, almost naked again in front of her slip into baggy pants and a tank top. She could still tell Santana's skin was damp from their bath; the other girl was so desperate to get away from her that she didn't bother drying herself. Brittany groaned in frustration, she really didn't like Santana right now. Santana must have mistaken her groan for pain because she came back down and kneeled beside her.

"Are you OK?"

"I'm mad at you" Brittany said flatly.

"I know"

"But you're still so hot" she added.

"I know" Santana smiled feebly.

"You're a heart breaker, you know that?" Brittany said her voice mixed with anger and hurt.

"I know"

Brittany rolled her eyes "Don't you have anything else to say?"

"Not right now" she said holding Brittany by the side and standing them both up. Brittany was still shivering.

Santana put a t-shirt on her and tugged Brittany's still damp jeans down and threw them into the corner. She held out a baggy pair of jogging pants and Brittany stepped into them automatically, still shivering from head to toe.

They stood there, eye-to-eye in the dark room for a second. Santana looked so sad, possibly the saddest Brittany had ever seen her.

"That's not fair Santana, you don't get to look at me like that, you have no right to be sad" Brittany said and climbed into the bed pulling the covers up tight to her neck and hoped they would heat her body. At least the nausea eased up.

Santana climbed onto the bed and over her body to sit down at her wayside. The Latina scooted up until she was the sitting by Brittany's neck, staring down onto her face with an unrecognizable expression. She couldn't pity Santana, she _wouldn't_. A dark side within Brittany really wanted to tell the other girl she kissed Quinn and revel in the hurt that would likely manifest itself on that perfect face of hers, maybe even go as far to lie about enjoying it…

"I'm not mad," Santana said quietly, interrupting her thoughts. "I'm scared," she said as began carefully stroking over Brittany's forehead, the touch instantly dispersing the blonde's dark thoughts and calming her stomach a little.

"There's nothing to be scared of, feelings aren't scary and neither am I"

"I'm not scared of you," Santana said shaking her head a little as her fingertip trailed it's way softly down from the bridge to the tip of Brittany's nose.

"Then what are you scared of?" Brittany asked quietly, she didn't want to speak too loud or move too much incase Santana would just retreat inside herself yet again.

Santana sighed and Brittany thought maybe the other girl already had.

"Of what's to come," Santana surprisingly explained. The Latina retracted her hand and began wringing her fingers. Brittany knew she was nervous. "You and I" Santana continued and paused. Brittany could feel her heart beat in anticipation. "Things…things are going to change between us soon"

Brittany stared up at her, the statement going straight to her heart but not really registering in her head. It sounded neither bad nor good. If anything though, she couldn't shake how ominous it sounded.

"What do you mean?" Brittany asked, the shakiness of her own voice rattling against her throat.

"You'll see" Santana sighed almost sadly. "Right now you need to get some sleep."

Brittany opened her mouth but then closed it; the look Santana gave her was pretty final. The sadness Brittany felt earlier swirling in her stomach multiplied by ten. Santana looked so sad, and things were apparently going to change between them. Was Santana ending this? Whatever they were? She could see distance in Santana's brown orbs and it unsettled her in a way she really didn't like, despite how mad she was at Santana she was still hurt because this felt like the end. The end of…something…

And then a possibility came into Brittany's mind as Santana continued to confidently hold her gaze, her eyes tired and gloomy. It's like the other girl just realized that they could no longer be friends. Brittany swallowed submissively and felt the sadness multiply again. The worst part was, Brittany knew she was right.

"Are you even tired?" Santana asked after a long silence.

"N-no…too much to think about…my stomach feels…" Brittany groaned, her stomach actually felt a little better, it was just the sad weight of her heart that was crashing down on it.

"You're thinking too much, just like you do with your Dad" Santana said.

Brittany blinked up at her and felt a little anger bubble inside her. "What do you mean? How can you even compare this to my Dad? How dare you!" Brittany tried to sit up and possibly hit the other girl but Santana pressed two hands to her shoulders and forced her back down.

"Sleep," Santana said simply, as if she didn't just offend Brittany. "I know you," she continued and Brittany just stared up at her, wondering if she's ever heard Santana speak this much and this honestly to her. "You think you're stupid but you're not. Sometimes it's good to be a little stupid though, and then you don't overthink things. Sometimes it's better to think your dad's just away and will be back soon, it's better to think that I love you and nothing else besides that matters-"

Brittany's heart stopped.

"-sometimes it's better to see things simply. A long time ago I used to think you were naive for seeing everything so damn easy, so assuredly, so…wonderfully simple. I thought it was stupid but I was wrong, if anything I'm just jealous"

Brittany was floored with Santana's words and candor that she questioned whether or not she was so incredibly high right now that all of this was just a figment of her imagination.

"Anyway, sleep," Santana said again and rested her hand gently over Brittany's at her side.

Brittany just stared up at her and wondered if Santana even realized she said she loved her for a second time, she spoke so fast and the context…she didn't know…why did they have to be this complicated? She had more questions for the other girl, like what did she mean that things would change between them, and why did she say she loved her back. It sounded sincere at the time; did Santana say it by accident? Can you even say 'I love you' by accident?

"Do you want me to sing to you?" Santana asked once again reeling her out of her endless thoughts.

Brittany looked from Santana's sad eyes down to the warm hand over her own that was still shaking a little. Santana's thumb was grazing along the bumps of her knuckles. She nodded as familiar tingles trickled their way up from her hand, up her arm and to her body.

Santana cleared her throat a little and began singing;

"_What a night for a dance, you know I'm a dancing machine_

_With a fire in my bones and the sweet taste of kerosene_

_I get lost in the night so high I don't want to come down_

_To face the loss of the good thing that I've found__"_

Santana squeezed her hand a little tighter as she sang. Brittany was already beginning to feel drowsy as Santana's lower than usual, and more gravelly than usual voice sang;

"_In the dark of the night I could hear you calling my name_

_With the hardest of hearts I still feel full of pain_

_So I drink and I smoke and I ask you if you're ever around_

_Even though it was me who drove us right in the ground__"_

Santana shrugged a shoulder as her eyebrows knitted upwards. It was the kind of apologetic shrug that Brittany knew she did when she meant lyrics literally.

"_See the time we shared it was precious to me_

_But all the while I was dreaming of revelry"_

Brittany's heartbeat was thudding low and rhythmic as she simply stared between brown orbs and luscious lips that were emitting the most beautiful sound she had ever heard. Her eyelids blinked slowly as they felt heavier.

"_Born to run, baby run like a stream down a mountainside_

_With the wind in my back I don't ever even bat an eye_

_Just know it was you all along who had a hold of my heart_

_But the demon and me were the best of friends from the start__"_

Santana looked down and dragged her hand away from Brittany's almost unwillingly, leaving it there cold and trembling once more. Brittany's eyelids were getting heavier still; she could no longer distinguish between when they were open and when they were shut. All that mattered was the voice she could hear._  
><em>

"_So the time we shared it was precious to me_

_All the while I was dreaming of revelry_

_Dreaming of revelry__"_

Brittany had slipped into slumber before Santana could even finish the song.

Her dreams were vivid and weird yet by the time she woke she couldn't remember any of them. There was a gnawing feeling in the pit of her stomach and she felt a warm uncomfortable feeling sweep across her forehead and behind her thighs. Her stomach was lurching. She was going to throw up. With sleep in her eyes and not even registering anything but hurtling out of Santana's room she whizzed by the blurriness of the corridor and barged the toilet door open, collapsing to the hard tiled floor and watched as the contents of her stomach emptied themselves in the toilet bowl. Those contents turned out to be nothing but thick mucus, as her stomach was already positively empty.

"Eugh…" she groaned, still gagging a little.

She heard Santana's voice head toward the toilet; it sounded like she was talking to someone. She reached the bathroom door and Brittany realized she was on the phone to someone.

"Mhmm," Santana hummed down the phone, giving Brittany a sympathetic look. "Really it was all my fault sir…oh…right yeah…James…"

Brittany lifted her head further and wiped her mouth the back of her hand. Santana was talking to her Dad?

"If you could phone the school that would be great…mhmm…yeah…she's puking as we speak…ha…yeah…mhmm…ok then…thanks a lot, no it's fine…ok…bye"

Brittany gave her a curious look as she hung up.

"I uh, told your dad you ate a really bad burrito," Santana said, smiling nervously. "I said you wouldn't be in school today"

"What time is it?" Brittany asked, her throat thick and sore.

"Half eight"

"Shouldn't you be getting to school, I can walk home"

"What? Hell no," Santana said and crossed her arms looking at her with a frown. "I'm staying here with you, and you're getting back to bed, I'm not just leaving you like this"

Brittany just raised an eyebrow at her.

"So c'mon, if you're done puking get back to bed, I'm making you homemade tomato soup as we speak"

Brittany just scoffed and stood up, her legs felt weaker and number than usual. "Soooo," she drawled out. "You're just going to act all nice to me and pretend nothing happened last night, huh?"

She was still so mad at Santana.

Santana looked at her seriously. "I'll be up in ten minutes with your soup" she muttered quietly then left.

Brittany followed her into the hallway and watched as she went back down the stairs. "Yeah that's right, ignore what I say as usual" Brittany said to her back bitterly. "Fuck you" she added before heading back into Santana's room. She heard Santana's footsteps take pause at the words before resuming a moment later. She didn't care anymore.

She climbed back into the bed and sat there, pillows propped up behind her until Santana came in a while later balancing a breakfast tray on her hand. Avoiding eye contact the other girl came forward and put the tray down on its legs over Brittany. The blonde looked down to see two slices of bread, a bowl of delicious looking tomato soup and a glass of orange juice.

"I figured you shouldn't eat too many solids today" Santana spoke. She sounded nervous. "Uh I won't be offended if you don't eat it or anything, I know you must feel like crap-"

"Why? Do I look like crap?" Brittany interjected, wanting to see Santana squirm more.

"What? N-no! Not at all, you're beautiful like always," she said quietly.

Brittany, despite herself, felt her cheeks burn red; they probably matched the soup in front of her.

Santana walked around to the other side of the bed, got on and shuffled herself carefully toward Brittany, trying not to move too much and spill the soup over the edge of the bowl. What came next Brittany didn't expect but she really should have, it was the Santana she had come to know and love; Santana sucked in her lower lip and held it there as she came even closer that Brittany could smell her. The other girl looked at her nervously then took the spoon, scooped up some soup and held the spoon up in front of the blonde's mouth.

Brittany just blinked between the spoon and Santana's expectant eyes. Honestly, if it had been anyone else she would have been offended at being spoon-fed, _literally_. People she knew had always wrapped her up in cotton wool, her so called friends, her dad, even her mom in her own twisted way.

"I know we need to talk," Santana spoke, "but it'll have to wait till tomorrow, just, let me take care of you today, OK?"

Brittany stared into deep brown eyes and she knew this wasn't Santana's usual deflection, she could tell that perhaps she actually wanted to talk, or at least felt the need to. She guessed things really were going to change for them, well, she knew that already, she didn't know how they could possibly go back to where they were from this.

Brittany's reply was to lean forward and take the spoon in her mouth. She felt the hot liquid slide wonderfully down her raw throat. "Mhmm, not bad" Brittany smiled and the edge of Santana's lips dared to twitch in response, "OK we'll talk tomorrow, but…can I ask you one question?"

Santana put the spoon back down with a clunk and nodded, looking positively frightened at what that question might be.

"Did you mean it?"

Brown eyes met blue and Brittany knew she didn't have to elaborate, Santana knew what she was talking about. She was so hard to read Brittany thought, as she watched Santana's eyes look down a little, and the smallest of frowns crease her forehead. Santana swallowed and her eyes flickered back up looking Brittany straight in the eyes.

"Every word" she whispered and quickly raised another spoonful of soup.

Brittany, feeling her heart beat erratically against her chest did the first thing to distract herself from possibly flailing. She took the spoon quickly in her mouth and never broke eye contact as she swallowed again and licked her lips in the silence between them; she smirked a little when Santana's eyes fell to her tongue then back up to her eyes for the briefest of moments.

"So…" Brittany spoke quietly. "If I were to ask you to say it again…?"

She had to be sure. Last night could have been excused away with the drugs, even though in her heart she knew Santana meant it – _both _times.

Santana seemed in thought for a little before giving her an answer that did nothing to provide the reassurance she so desperately needed. "That sounds like another question," Santana said before adding, "Britt, do you trust me? I mean really, trust me?"

She sounded uncertain.

Brittany blinked confused at the other girl, as she wasn't expecting that question. She pondered over it for a millisecond but it felt like much longer. Did she trust Santana? There was only one real answer to that.

"With my life" Brittany said simply, giving a small smile.

Santana's indifferent features turned into a bashful smile, a relieved smile. It made Brittany's smile widen more for some reason.

"Then trust me when I say, we'll talk tomorrow. Now…is there anything else I can do for you?"

"You could let me eat this damn soup on my own" Brittany smirked, her heart feeling light and floaty. Was this…optimism she was feeling? She had been down this path before only for Santana to knock the wind out of her sails, so she tried not to dwell on it.

Santana chuckled and conceded to that. She briefly ran the back of her hand along the blonde's forehead.

"You're burning up a little, I'll go get you a cool cloth," she said as she reached the door.

"Santana?"

"Mhmm?"

"You do know I'm still mad at you, right?"

"I like it when you're mad though" Santana smirked.

"No, not when I'm this mad, trust me" Brittany said, trying her best to keep her face serious.

"Oh..." Santana sighed and looked down uncomfortably.

Brittany tried so hard not to giggle. "So," she said, willing her face not to betray her. "At least from now until this talking time you've apparently got planned, you should probably do a lot more groveling, don't you think?"

Santana opened her mouth then closed it. If Brittany were anyone else she knew Santana would have already retaliated, mocked the very idea of ever groveling to anyone. But she was Brittany, and so Santana just nodded a little and left the room.

Brittany tried to stifle her giggles by shoving more soup into her mouth. Really it was only fair - Santana had made her suffer plenty of times, maybe it was about time she was on the receiving end.

In between sleeping for hours, she had Santana at her beck and call, which turned out to be a lot more fun than she thought. She made Santana download movies for her and forced her to keep her company while she watched her favorite Disney movies, Santana giggled a few times and leaned into the blonde, which made her happier all the more. Santana would deny ever liking such movies though, but Brittany knew better than that. She would request her for things or to do things, making them more ridiculous each time to see how far she could push the other girl. So far she had managed to get Santana to tidy the room, massage her feet and pat the damp cloth over her face amongst other things. The last thing she ordered the other girl to do was to go to her house, fetch Lord Tubbington, bring him over and give him a bath. She was being sarcastic but much to her shock Santana merely groaned and went off before she could object.

"Santana!" Brittany shouted toward Santana downstairs. It was half three and she'd probably go home later for school tomorrow so she wanted to play a little more while she still could.

"Yes?" Santana said grimly, looking exhausted as she stood at the bedroom doorway. She had damp patches all over her clothes, and remnants of some cat hair on her pants. "I hate your pussy," she added dourly.

Brittany giggled.

"Why did you call me?"

"Oh right! Uhm, can I have a glass of coke with uhm…three ice cubes and a slice of lemon at the top?"

Santana stared at her in disbelief. "A…a slice of freakin' lemon? Are you serious? I don't have any, I'll have to go out to the store"

Brittany just grinned and nodded happily. Really, was there any particular reason she was doing this? Something in the back of her mind was telling her to guilt trip Santana because she herself had something to be guilty of. She shook the thought from her head quickly.

"Santana wait!" Brittany called after the other girl who was unbelievably, or believably at this point, half way out the door to adhere to her request. "I'm kidding, I don't want lemon…I'm not even thirsty"

Santana huffed and scowled at her and it was sort of adorable.

"C'mere" Brittany said softly, suddenly feeling sorry for Santana.

Santana walked uncertainly toward the bed.

Brittany outreached her hand and clasped it around Santana's. She brought her hand up to her lips and planted a soft kiss on the back of it. She quickly let go and stared up at Santana who looked a little breathless at the gesture.

"W-what was that for?"

Brittany shrugged. "Thanks for today, you made the aftermath of overdosing on drugs fun"

Santana chuckled and rolled her eyes. "I still feel responsible Britt, this should have never had happened"

"Well, I'm just glad my parents didn't find out"

"Yeah," Santana sighed in agreement and shuffled on her feet a little.

"I do have one more favor to ask though"

Santana groaned.

"Can you get my crutches? I think it's time I left" Brittany smiled. She felt sad to leave Santana, just like any other time she did, but it felt like the best thing to do right now.

Santana snorted. "Sure thing Blondie, although I'm thinking about changing your nickname"

"Oh?" Brittany asked curiously.

"Mhmm," Santana hummed in amusement. "Boss seems more appropriate"

"Don't worry Santana, I won't tell anyone what a walk over you are" Brittany winked.

"I'm not a walk over," Santana stated, more like a fact than an argument. "It's just…well…I'd let you walk over me anytime you wanted"

Brittany giggled at the thought, and even more at Santana's attempt at saying something…nice? Romantic even?

"I'll contact you if I ever need a human bridge then" the blonde grinned.

The next day at school was boring as ever, Brittany still had a lingering headache and a bit of a temperature but it was something she'd rather deal with than stay off another day and arouse suspicion. A bad burrito excuse can only stretch so far. Come lunchtime she was alone for a change and swung around on her crutches trying to find Santana. She hadn't seen or received a text from the girl since yesterday, but she guessed it was no big deal since she would see her in their English class after lunch. After checking their spot behind the bleachers, which was empty, Brittany decided to sit out; despite the chilly fall wind, and watch the cheerios do their routine. She cursed wearing only leggings and a t-shirt. Her heart panged as she watched them, it looked brutal as ever but strangely that's what she missed the most. Once they took a break Brittany motioned for Quinn to come over to her. Quinn stopped on the grass and looked up to the second row where Brittany sat.

"How…are…you…feeling?" Quinn asked panting between breaths and clutching her waist.

"A little rough but I'll live" Brittany smiled at the other girl. "I wish I brought you lunch or a drink," Brittany said, remembering how hungry and thirsty she was and even remembering the time before her accident when Santana brought her lunch.

"Promise me you'll never take that stuff again" Quinn said crossing her arms.

"I don't plan on it," Brittany said simply, shrugging. "But I'm a try anything once kinda gal" she smirked.

Quinn laughed a little and seemed suddenly flustered by the comment.

"You kissed me," Brittany stated.

"I…I…I know" Quinn stuttered out. It was odd to see her fumble over her words.

"Look Quinn, I _really _like you but-"

"Look Brittany, just stop OK? We really don't need to have this conversation. I get it" Quinn said firmly, her shy demeanor fading.

She get's it? Well, Brittany sort of admitted a lot to her that night.

"So…we're OK?" Brittany frowned, unconvinced.

"We're fine Brittany" Quinn smiled, but it wasn't entirely genuine. "Anyway I better go," she said as she motioned her thumb over her shoulder. "Coach is making us stay after school to practice too, so I better go get something to eat while I can"

Brittany nodded in understanding and with that Quinn jogged away from her.

Brittany was the first person to arrive for English. She really liked English, mostly because she sat next to Santana but also because she actually liked the book she was reading, even if it was a little depressing and even if she was probably 10 chapters behind the rest of the class. She twirled the tattered book in her hands, Lord Of The Flies. She wondered what would happen if the glee club got stranded on an island, what role would she play? Without her dancing right now she played no role whatsoever in the glee club, she was sort of losing her identity, yet at the same time with her admission to Quinn she felt like she was discovering other parts of it in the meantime.

"Overthinking again?" came a familiar voice.

Santana was sauntering toward her in the isle in the middle of the classroom; her dress was blue at the bottom but white and stripy at the top. Over it sat her usual leather jacket. Brittany swallowed as she came closer, then the other girl drifted behind her and took her usual seat. Brittany instantly smelled smoke and coconuts but something else was disrupting the smells.

"Have you been drinking?" Brittany asked a little more confrontationally than she intended.

"I had one gulp of Jack's, geez, I needed it to settle my nerves, OK?" Santana said defensively.

"What are you nervous about?" Brittany asked facing the front of the class, they were the only two in here but maybe if she didn't look at Santana it would take away some of the intensity…maybe…

"We need to talk"

Brittany frowned confused. "Yeah, I know that but…wait…you're nervous about us talking?"

"Kinda," Santana admitted and Brittany just hard to turn and face her at the honesty. She wished it wouldn't surprise her when Santana was being honest with her, but it still did. "I mean," the other girl hesitated, "I don't think you'll like what I have to say, or even like me at all after it"

Brittany felt like she was swallowing a cold piece of iron at yet again how ominous Santana sounded. She turned to face the front of the class again. "I love you Santana," she stated freely, she was pretty sure she heard Santana gasp a little, even though she had already told her this. "Nothing you say will change that"

There was a brief silence.

"I…I wouldn't be so sure…" Santana said quietly.

English dragged in and Santana made no attempt at further talking to Brittany during it, even though they had a few chances to talk. She watched with interest as Santana ripped a piece of paper out of her writing book and began to scribble a note on it. The bell rang and Santana got up first, the note scrunched up in her hand. The Latina clasped her hand around Brittany's wrist and coaxed her hand open; she placed her hand over Brittany's, dropping the note onto her palm. Brittany felt her hand tingle as Santana left if linger there for a moment longer then left without a word.

Brittany made no attempt to move as the rest of the class spilled out. Was this Santana's attempt at talking? A note? She rolled her eyes but read it anyway:

_Meet me in the auditorium after last period._

_P.s this wasn't meant to sound wanky but now that I'm re-reading it, it does sound like a booty call, but FYI that is totally not what this is, well, unless you want to of course, I'm not really down with doing it in a big ass room that's supposed to echo sound but whatever floats your boat. _

_You're the boss after all._

Brittany scrunched the note up in her hand gave a hearty laugh. As she left the classroom she didn't quite have the heart to throw the note away in the trash, instead she tucked it into her bag.

Brittany kept bouncing in her seat during last period in anticipation of both a good and bad kind. She felt relief when she finally heard the last bell of the day.

"You wanted to meet me here?" Brittany asked, swinging her crutches till she was center stage in the large McKinley auditorium. They were the only two in here.

Santana was sitting in the front row of the seats looking up at the stage, she got up and climbed up on stage, dusting herself off as she came up to Brittany's eyelevel a few feet in front of her.

"I can't do this anymore," Brittany found herself speaking first "I can't keep going back and forth with you, it's too much" she said, her voice trembling, her throat feeling thick and like it was closing in on itself. "I've been more than patient with you Santana, but…I can't…I can't even be your fiend, you and I? We can never be _just _friends and I think you know that."

Santana swallowed and simply looked at her, she looked small and weary and her eyes were glistening. The purple light from the stage light was making her glow softly.

Brittany couldn't help but feel annoyed, "So, what did you bring me here for? You gonna sing to me again? Think it will make everything better?" Brittany shrugged confrontationally, the bottoms of her crutches clunking on the stage. "Bought me something? Huh?"

Santana opened her mouth to say something but it shuddered and she closed it again.

"Whatever Santana, goodbye" Brittany said sensing she was, after all of this, going to get nothing as usual and was about to turn around when…

"Wait!" Santana called out to her, her voice echoing around the large room.

Brittany raised her eyebrows at the other girl expectantly. _Well?_

Santana cleared her throat and shuffled on her feet a little before she spoke;

"And her heart would beat against me,  
>In sorrow and in rest:<br>And I should know if it beat right,  
>I'd clasp it round so close and tight.<p>

And I would be the necklace,  
>And all day long to fall and rise<br>Upon her balmy bosom,  
>With her laughter or her sighs:<br>And I would lie so light, so light,  
>I scarce should be unclasp'd at night."<p>

Brittany blinked at the other girl as a long silence fell between them; she felt her heart flutter but tried to make her face remain stoic. Brittany wasn't going to say anything; she was fed up doing the talking and the chasing.

"Uh…" Santana spoke again, her voice uneven. "That was Tennyson," she explained.

"I don't know who that is," Brittany said shrugging. "I'd rather hear how Santana Lopez feels anyway, so it doesn't matter what poetry you recite, or what you buy me, or what song you sing-"

"I love you" Santana cut her off quickly, she took a step closer to Brittany. "I…I do…I love you…so much" she said, her bottom lip quaking and her eyes darting all over the blonde's features.

Brittany felt so many emotions suddenly run through her blood that her knees gave way and she collapsed, slamming onto the marble hardness of the stage, her crutches clattering alongside her.

"Brittany? Are you OK?" came Santana's panicked voice as she hurtled toward her, dropping to her knees in front of her. Brittany rolled onto her back seeing stars a little, the purple lights from above swirling around her. Santana's warm hands cupped both her cheeks, engulfing her face with tingles and burning the very blood beneath her skin.

"To answer your question…am I OK?" Brittany croaked out, looking up into deep brown eyes, the only thing she could see with clarity right now. "Very much depends on you"

"Careful," Santana said as she gently lifted her up by the back of her neck to sit upright. "Are you OK?"

She was doing that thing again to the back of her neck, stroking her thumb back and forth that made Brittany's head tingle and her hair stand on end.

"Can you say that again?" Brittany asked quietly, a small smile tugging her lips.

Santana continued stroking her thumb across the blonde's nape, a humbled and unsure smile spreading across her features. "I love you" Santana breathed, leaning her forehead down and resting it against Brittany's.

"Again" Brittany breathed back, a giggle intertwining with her increasingly rapid breathing.

Santana rolled her eyes a little, amused. "I love you"

Santana barely got to finish the last one when Brittany cupped Santana's face in her hands and brought their lips crashing together. Santana sucked in a surprised breath through her nose and a low chuckle vibrated at the back of her throat. Brittany pressed her lips further onto Santana's yet didn't want to open her mouth; she just wanted to kiss her. Simply. She ran her thumbs across the Latina's cheekbones as she pressed even further into the other girls face, their lips mashed and messy together, breathing hard as one. She whimpered when Santana ran her tongue along her lips briefly. Brittany felt like a million butterflies had just sprouted wings in her stomach and they were all trying to find the way out, they fluttered wonderfully against the lining of her stomach and she felt it reverberate against her heart.

She pulled away with a wet smack of their lips and grinned happily at Santana who still sat, eyes-closed, eyebrows raised. She looked like she had just been kissed for the first time and couldn't quite believe it. Santana licked her lips as her eyes fluttered open, revealing warm brown eyes to the blonde.

"Hi," Santana said softly, a smile on her face.

"Hi," Brittany giggled gently back.

They both just sat, center stage looking at each other with the largest grins either had seen the other wear. After a while of contented silence they both just laughed and looked away. Brittany didn't quite know what to do with herself. Santana's smile faltered however and she began playing with her hands. The brunette looked down at her hands and Brittany watched as the other girl began scraping away at her fingers with her nails.

"Is there something you wanted to say Santana?" Brittany smiled calmly at her.

"It's just…you…you don't deserve to be burdened by me," Santana said shakily as she raised her head and made eye contact with Brittany. Her eyes were watery.

Brittany did her utmost to remain supportive and calm and wore a small smile on her face. "It's just your opinion that you'll burden me, but I don't think it matters either way, I can't help that I've fallen in love with you, people don't generally tend to get a say in those things" she said simply.

This made Santana's lips form the ghost of a smile as she blinked away tears that had yet to fall. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you love me? W-what could you possibly even love about me, or even like?"

Brittany cocked her head to the side curiously. "I love you Santana," she shrugged "you're asking me to explain love? For what it's worth," Brittany paused and seen that Santana was hanging on her every word, as she possibly held a breath. "For what it's worth, I can tell you what I love about you but I can't explain why I love you, that questions wayyyy too big" Brittany smiled. "Right up there with what caused the big bang and what is the meaning of life"

Santana gave a sniff and chuckled a little.

"You're loyal, you're honest…to a fault even"

Another chuckle.

"You're beautiful and brave and I think you're wise for someone so young. I feel safe when I'm with you, loved, even though you're not the best at showing it but I get that, but it doesn't stop me from feeling or seeing your love" Brittany said, her breath catching in her throat even as she was speaking because with every word the butterflies in her stomach seemed to flutter with more earnest.

"I have problems" Santana said suddenly, her tone somber.

"We all do"

"But mine won't go away" Santana countered.

"Then we'll work together to make them go away"

Santana seemed momentarily frustrated but just slumped her shoulders and looked down to the floor. Brittany crossed her legs together and sat there patiently.

There was a long silence and Santana was just staring at the floor, she would occasionally rub underneath her eye, probably trying not to cry more.

"I…I have a problem with alcohol and probably drugs too…b-b-but the worst part is…they're not even the real problem, they're just the solution to my problem" Santana said shakily, her shoulders heaving in quiet sobs.

"How so?" Brittany asked quietly.

"I…I…how can you love me when I have this dark, horrible thing inside me? This fucking monster?" Santana said shooting her a glare and frowning sadly. "You know I almost killed a girl once?"

The words echoed around the room and Brittany rattled her brain as to where that sounded familiar. Then she remembered.

"Quinn told me there used to be a cheerio in this school and after Quinn…you know…outed you this girl told everyone and-"

"And I fucking held her head under the toilet bowl water until I stopped seeing the bubbles" Santana growled. "She had to transfer school and everything"

Brittany swallowed hard and stared at her. "You were upset, you made a mistake-"

"Maybe," Santana shot back. "But it's not a mistake if it happens twice is it? You wanna know why I was in juvy? Because I nearly fucking killed a guy. 'Aggravated assault' they called it" Santana said finger quoting. "Some douchebag broke into my house and I hate being alone in that fucking god damn house!" Santana practically shouted, then calmed herself, Brittany looked down to the other girls hands and seen them shake, red lines on the back of them where the girl had been digging her nails in. "Anyway, I caught the guy, I defended myself but he ran out of the house and apparently I was so angry that I chased him out there and proceeded to hit the guy at least five times with a baseball bat. I had never been so scared in my life. The bastard tried to sue me but it didn't fly. They gave me a few weeks in juvy but I was out in two and served the rest of my sentence doing community service. I sat there and told my sob story and they ate it up, but do you wanna know the worst part?"

Brittany shook her head feeling numb.

"I don't remember a god damn thing. Both times. I don't remember grabbing that girl and dragging her to the toilets, I don't remember picking up the baseball bat and chasing that guy out my house" Santana said, her voice all over the place and tears now streaming from her red eyes. "Because I got so damn angry those two times that I blacked out…at least…that's what I call it. I was told what I did but I honestly don't remember, they got some shrink to evaluate me and they said I had anger issues. Well no fucking shit. They forced me to see Pillsbury but I've never went. She can't fix this; she can't fix this thing inside of me. Nobody can."

Santana suddenly stood up, her hands shaking as she wiped the back of her hand across her cheek. Brittany scrambled up to join her.

"So you see Brittany? You can't possibly love me or even be with me when I'm walking around feeling like I've got a bomb strapped to my chest that might go off any minute. I don't want to be with you when something might happen and I go into a fit of rage and I can't even remember what I'm doing or where I am. I made you cry and hit me within the first week of meeting me, I think that pretty much sums up the kind of person I am"

"You saved my life, are teaching me Spanish and never, not once, ever took revenge on Quinn, despite you knowing her secret. I also think that says something about the kind of person you are" Brittany's voice was trembling, she couldn't take all this in. "I'm not going to stand here and allow you to paint yourself as some kind of unlovable monster, you've made mistakes, you just have to deal with them! Stop kicking yourself over things that could have turned out much worse!"

"I love that you try to see the best in everyone Britt but there's no best to find here" Santana said glumly. "That's why I need to drink, most of the time I don't feel the anger when I drink, it sedates me, it allows me to be _me_. If you want to be with me you're going to have to take the shit that comes with it. So either I go cold turkey and you see the _real me_, the ugly me or you have to deal with having an alcoholic girlfriend, so which is it?"

Girlfriend. Brittany's heart stopped as the butterflies in her stomach that had all but died suddenly fluttered lazily back into action. "Y-y-you're asking me?"

"I said I'd do anything for you and I meant it. If you want me to stop drinking I'll do it, if you want me to jump of a cliff I'll do it. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me Britt," she said firmly.

Brittany found herself blubber and was crying herself now. "I-I don't have the solutions to a-a-a-any of your problems Santana, I can only say that I love you and I'll be here to support you in a-a-any way I can"

Santana wiped her eyes again, her mascara running down to her cheeks. "I don't think we should hang out as much anymore"

"What?"

"Our relationship isn't exactly healthy. It's true what you said you know, we can't be friends but I want to be worthy of you so…I think it's best if we had some distance from now on"

Brittany's throat was closed up as her heart sank. "Are, are you ending this? You can't shut me out now Santana"

Santana's lips trembled a sad smile. "No Britt," she sighed with fondness "I'm not ending things or shutting you out, if anything it's the opposite."

"It doesn't feel like the opposite," Brittany choked out, stepping closer to the other girl so that they were eye to eye.

"I just need to figure things out and sort other things, I'm not going to ignore you or anything Britt, I just think we shouldn't be together as much anymore" Santana said ambiguously, running a hand through her hair and sniffing back more tears. "Until the right time comes…"

"You don't have to deal with everything in your life alone Santana"

"I know," Santana conceded.

"Until the right times comes? What does that mean anyway? What happens then?" Brittany asked frantically.

Santana sniffed once more as she stopped crying and tugged her jacket out, straightening it.

The faintest of smirks spread across her face. "Then, I ask you out on that date"

Brittany clutched at her chest, feeling sad and happy, conflicted and scared, feeling like she didn't know Santana at all yet knew her better than most right in this moment.

"I-I…I don't know what to say," Brittany crumbled and flung herself around Santana, embracing her in a tight hug and inhaling her sharply as if it was the last time she'd ever see her.

"Ssh, it's OK" Santana cooed and patted her back lovingly.

They stood that way for what felt like hours. Brittany realized that her earlier gut instinct was only partly right. This was the end of something, but also the beginning of something new.

There was an odd serenity in the silence between them as they left the school. The sun was out, it was cold and there was a gentle wind carrying leaves idly along the ground. The sky was tingeing red and orange as the evening went on. In the car park, instead of heading toward her car Santana walked over to the bench sitting opposite it, patting her hand on the space next to her. Brittany followed suit and sat down next to her, maybe she wanted to talk Brittany thought, it was cold out here, but whenever and wherever Santana wanted to talk Brittany would listen. Santana let out a shaky breath and looked ahead at nothing particularly, Brittany watched her, the other girl looked so weary and defeated but also strangely less burdened. Maybe, much like Brittany with her admission to Quinn, a weight had been lifted off Santana's shoulders too.

It was cold and calm as they sat watching the sunset in the distance. Brittany shuddered a little.

"Here," Santana took off her leather jacket and draped it over Brittany's shoulders.

The blonde smiled shyly as she put her arms in, the soft inside lining and Santana's body heat already making her goosebumps retreat. "But now you're cold" Brittany noted as Santana began to rub her hands up and down her bare biceps.

"Do you remember when we first met?" Santana asked with a wistful look in her eye and smiling faintly ahead.

Brittany chuckled a little and shifted closer so their thighs were grazing. "Yeah, you called me Barbie, you _hated _me," she said letting an amused sigh escape her lips.

Santana looked to the side at her, her eyebrow arched. "I didn't hate you"

"Yes you did," Brittany argued, there was no way Santana was going to win this one.

"No I didn't," Santana said more adamantly. She was looking Brittany straight in the eye, her expression unwavering. "I _wanted _to hate you but I just couldn't, I made up all these things I thought I knew about you in my head just to get myself to hate you. I knew as soon as I met you, from the instant I met you…that you were dangerous…"

"Dangerous?" Brittany asked confused. She tucked her cold nose down beneath the collar of the jacket, inhaling the familiarity of Santana.

Santana lifted her legs a little and sat on her hands, as if it was all she could do to stop herself from fidgeting. "It might sound corny but…I knew…the moment you smiled that goofy smile at me, and looked at me with those eyes and held out your freakin' hand, I mean who does that?" she said giving a warm laugh.

Brittany grinned and felt her heart beat a little faster against her ribs.

"I knew,' Santana continued "If I spent anymore time with you, I'd fall in love with you…I tried so hard for it not to happen…but…well…you're nothing if not persistent Britt" she said smiling genuinely at her, the white of her teeth showing and her dimples creasing her slightly red cheeks.

"I never thought I'd have you" Brittany admitted quietly, looking down at her feet swinging back and forth.

"Brittany," Santana sighed with affection as if she had somehow missed the point of something. Brittany frowned and looked up at her. Her breath caught in her throat a little as Santana was smiling at her, a single tear rolling down her cheek. She didn't look sad though. Not one bit. The smile widened even further as the tear reached her chin, she blinked bashfully to the side before speaking with the most uneven, honest tone Brittany had ever heard from her.

"You had me from the start"

Brittany felt the air leave her lungs and her heart almost explode, as the words seemed to register, Santana's earlier admission of love suddenly hit her like a ton weight too, like some sort of delayed reaction. She felt sick in the most delirious, wonderful way. She was sure she could easily throw up all her internal organs right now and simply give them to Santana as some sort of offering. She'd give Santana her heart; pounding and bloody in her hand if it could show one fraction of the love and appreciation she had for Santana in that moment, because she knew it was something her mouth would never be able to vocalize. She sat; lips parted breathing through her mouth, struggling for air. She felt like she was dying and she'd just found out she was going to heaven. Though this would be heaven in her world, Santana sitting here with her, sunset behind them, and the other girl being open and honest about her feelings. She was so incredibly moved by Santana today, and proud at the same time that her body shut down. She never before realized she could gain happiness from another person's happiness, and to be the source of that happiness, well, Brittany had read many words and expressions in books but none of them seemed to be applicable, the English language suddenly seemed so inadequate. She knew Santana was a good person, that she was just troubled, she knew Santana was trying to sabotage her own character in some vein attempt at her not hurting others, but they were too far gone for that. Brittany was here to stay, she belonged with Santana even though in the back of her mind she feared what might happen if she told her about the kiss with Quinn, even though it didn't mean anything.

Santana got up and turned to face her, shivering on the spot a little. She wiped the tear away from her face and smiled beautifully, the sun in the sky framing her face perfectly. "C'mon," Santana said, inclining her head toward the car. "Us having some distance doesn't mean to say I can't give you a ride home" she smiled.

Brittany got up slowly still silently stunned; she had a familiar feeling of elation in her stomach and buzzing beneath her skin – except this time she wasn't high, well, certainly not on drugs anyway.

"Your jacket…" she mumbled as she stood on the spot dumbfounded. Out of all the things she wanted to say to Santana right now, this was nowhere near the top of the list. Stupid brain. She went to take the jacket off.

"No," Santana said, stopping her by raising a hand. "You keep it, it looks much better on you than it does on me anyway" she smirked.

"I…I highly doubt that" she stuttered.

Santana giggled and it suddenly reawakened the butterflies that had been lying dormant in her stomach.

"Usted es la persona más hermosa que he conocido" Santana sighed.

_You are __the most beautiful person __I've ever met._

Brittany's heart jolted when she recognized most of the words and knew what they meant. Her pride was overshadowed by her complete adoration. The butterflies were now tickling her stomach.

Her lips twitched into a smile before replying.

"Usted demasiado"

_You too._

Santana's face looked how she felt, and there were simply no words to describe it. Santana was still the most complicated book Brittany thought, but now for the first time it felt like they were on the same page.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Happy thanksgiving guys! I've started another fic so if you want to read something different check it out, anyway here is chapter 22! :)**

It had been several weeks since Santana told her she loved her and in that time it still hadn't really sunk in for Brittany. Almost everything between them had reverted to unusually platonic behavior; it didn't seem like a step back though, on the contrary it felt like both of them had done a lot of growing up. Brittany was out of her crutches most of the time now, it was weird because she resented them but now that she no longer used them as much she kind of missed them. Walking was no longer as exhausting but she was nowhere near wanting to run, dance a lot or return to the cheerios anytime soon. It made her think about her future though, she had always wanted to dance but seeing how easily she was incapacitated gave her a dose of reality. What would she do if she injured herself in the future and couldn't make money? Dancing was still her priority but she needed a back up plan, and she definitely needed to look at colleges.

The beginnings of winter were here; Brittany's favourite time of year was the run up to Christmas. It was Thursday night and just like every Thursday Santana was lying beside her on her bed with their Spanish notebooks out. Lord Tubbington was snuggled up in a ball at the foot of the bed. The blonde was writing an essay Mr. Shue had assigned them, Santana had did hers in ten minutes but Brittany wanted to try do it all by herself with as minimal help as possible.

She was kind of distracted though because Santana was lying half-sleeping on her bed, looking incredibly cute in a red woolly sweater and leggings. She guessed even Santana couldn't wear dresses everyday when it was this cold out.

Santana's idyllic face seemed to suddenly smirk up at the ceiling.

"You're staring"

Brittany gave a nervous laugh and rolled her eyes. "I wasn't staring, I was just uhm…appreciating?"

Santana opened her eyes and looked at her.

The way Santana looked at Brittany was definitely one of the things that had changed since that day. Santana didn't seem as stressed or frustrated around Brittany and she smiled a lot more. Brittany loved this new, almost free Santana but she'd be lying if she said she missed the other aspects of their relationship, hell maybe she even missed their arrangement.

They hadn't done anything since that night at Santana's house in the bath, Brittany wanted to but Santana was true to her word when she said that distance between them would be a good idea. Apart from Thursday's they only saw each other in school and glee club. Weekends were either spent with Quinn or trying to dance in her garage (and for the most part failing). Brittany still hadn't told Santana about her kiss with Quinn, she knew she had to eventually but it was just never the right time. Besides it wasn't a big deal, it's not like she wanted to kiss Quinn and her and Santana were dating. Still…

Most of the time they studied together now. Brittany's heart jumped every time Santana had come over and on occasion reminded her that she loved her, one time she even left and placed a delicate kiss on her cheek. It was one of Brittany's favorite ever kisses she had received. She had smiled for days after that.

"You look cute" Brittany said bashfully, her eyelids fluttering along with her heart. It was quite scary how she was still not used to Santana even after all this time.

Santana smirked and shrugged a shoulder like she already knew.

Brittany rolled her eyes, put down her book and crawled over Santana so she was on top of her and nuzzled into the other girls neck.

"You smell awesome" Santana whispered in her ear and the blonde felt the other girls hand run through her golden locks.

Brittany grinned into her neck as tingles erupted all over her head and neck.

"I had a dream last night," Brittany mumbled into Santana's skin. Santana moaned a little in response and ran her hands down Brittany's back.

"Yeah? You want to tell me about it?"

"It was a sexy dream," Brittany breathed. "About you. I was on my knee's and in-between your legs"

She felt Santana's chest rise and fall quicker.

"I think it's cause I remember sometimes that I've never tasted you down there and I really, _really _want to" Brittany husked into the other girl's ear and subconsciously pressed her hips down a little harder onto Santana's.

"Fuck Brittany," Santana hissed and grabbed the blondes hair again with both hands. "You're making this hard. I don't want to just go back to what we were before"

"I know," Brittany sighed into her skin and brought herself up so she was straddling the other girl's hips. "Do you think you're ready for us to…move forward?"

She didn't know how else to put it.

"I want to do things right this time," said Santana, her dark eyes staring up into blue. "I want to… you know…take you out on a date and for it to be different"

Brittany could hardly fight the grin on her face. "Are you OK? You must be feeling ill or something to reject sweet lady sex," the blonde giggled.

Santana chewed her lip in embarrassment and rolled her eyes a little. "Yeah, yeah…make fun…"

"Have you uhm, did what you had to do? Cause you said you wanted to be worthy of me, even though I think you already are" Brittany said quietly.

Santana hesitated. "Not much has changed, I've stopped drinking in school though, so there's that"

"I noticed," Brittany smiled. She really did notice, she hadn't heard the glass bottles from Santana's bag for at least a week now. "But, you do realize that I want to date you no matter what, so…it doesn't really matter to me if you're drinking or not, or angry or not…"

Santana blinked away to the side and Brittany knew she had hit a nerve. That was the look the Latina gave whenever she felt like crying but tried not to. Brittany memorized all the looks of Santana, soaking in every detail. It was something she had to do when dealing with a person that didn't talk about their feelings much.

"C'mon I wanna walk you home"

The smile seemed to return to Santana's face as she looked back up at the blonde perched on top of her. "Britt, it's freezing outside, I can walk home myself, you can't walk me all the way to my house and all the way back yourself"

"Sure I can" Brittany grinned. "I was told to do more exercise anyways so" she shrugged. "Besides, I'm trying to be romantic"

"Romantic?" Santana sneered in amusement.

"Yeah, walking home in the cold is romantic, right?"

"Pfft, you won't think so once your tits freeze and drop off" Santana said smirking. "And FYI I won't love you half as much without tits"

"Mhmm, is that right?" Brittany said smirking and leaning down pressing a quick kiss on Santana's lips.

"Britt," Santana breathed and looked up at her looking a bit breathless. "No kissing either, people don't start kissing till they're on dates"

Brittany giggled. "Fine Santana, but I don't really like this new you, or at least my vagina doesn't cause like it's super lonely" Brittany said with a pout.

"You haven't been with anyone else?" Santana asked, a tone of insecurity about her voice.

Brittany sighed and smiled down at the other girl. "Of course not"

"Me neither" Santana said back almost instantly.

Then she remembered Quinn.

"I uhm…" Brittany began but chewed on her lip. Did it even count? She didn't think so.

"What's wrong?" Santana asked as she sat up and wrapped arms around the blonde's waist.

That just made it harder for Brittany to answer.

"Nothing…c'mon let's romantically walk you home"

Brittany felt the cold air as soon as she opened her front door. "Geez," she hissed, tightening her panda hat further onto her head and zipping up Santana's leather jacket that she had gotten in the habit of wearing. She quickly put on fingerless woolen gloves in some vein attempt to heat her hands.

"C'mon you," she said to Santana, linking her arm in the other girl's as they set out.

"Fuck, fuck, fuckety fuck it's fucking cold" Santana growled as they walked down the street, her grip on Brittany's arm getting tighter.

"See?" Brittany said, watching a white puff escape her lips and into the cold air. "_This_ is why we totally should have had sex, body heat, simplest way to keep warm, animals do it all the time"

"Yeah yeah, lesson learned. I'll never refuse you again boss."

"Also," she panted into the air, and moving her legs faster. Walking fast still felt weird. "This isn't romantic at all and that makes me sad"

Santana with her arm still linked around Brittany's halted them both. She seemed to hesitate over something for a moment before unlinking their arms and sliding her hand down Brittany's arm till she got to her gloved hand. Brittany felt the heat from Santana's palm as she clasped their hands together, interlinking their fingers as much as possible.

Brittany looked up at Santana slightly lost for words. Santana had never held her hand much before, and never outside the house.

Santana gave a small smile and a bashful shrug. "Slightly more romantic now?" she asked uncertainly.

Brittany just swallowed a cold lump in her throat and smiled nodding. She squeezed Santana's hand in hers as they began walking again; it was warm and tingly and spread warmth throughout her that defied the current temperature.

Her heart was kind of racing because they had never felt more perfect than in this moment. There was no one around to even witness them and she kind of just wanted someone to see how perfect they were holding hands, she was so happy that she might even say what a lovely day it was to the next stranger she seen.

"I love you" Brittany said quietly after a while, nothing but the sound of their footsteps echoing along the ground.

Santana let out a breath and Brittany watched it swirl in the air. "I love you too"

"Even if my boobs fall off?" Brittany smirked.

"Even if all your limbs fall off," Santana said giving a wary smile and squeezing her hand a little.

"I love you so much that I promise in this cold, if we get into a Titanic situation out here, I'll let you float on the piece of wood and you can let me go die in the ice"

Santana snorted. "I should think so, you owe me" she smirked. "But I must admit that's probably the weirdest yet most romantic thing someone has ever said to me"

"Thank you," Brittany whispered with pride. "And now I've made this walk romantic, aren't you glad we're walking?"

"No" Santana grumbled.

"I heard you, Kurt and Rachel talking about New York the other day in glee club. Are you really leaving after the school year?" Brittany asked, her stomach dropping a little.

What would she do without Santana? What was life like even before Santana? She couldn't remember.

"Yeah, it's a serious possibility, I mean, there's nothing keeping me here so," Santana shrugged and looked away.

Brittany suddenly felt even colder.

"Why Kurt and Rachel though? I mean, OK, you and Rachel have been friends for a while, but Kurt? It doesn't make any sense"

Santana smiled a little at her confusion, "It's not so much that I really want to live with them it's just, well, splitting the rent would be easy and…to be honest…if there's one thing I hate about living alone it's the silence. I figure if I shack up with them there would always be noise"

"Oh," Brittany breathed. She understood a little bit more now.

"But," Santana sighed, her shoulders slumping and her body leaning a little into Brittany's as they walked. "It might not happen, its just ideas we're throwing around"

Eventually they reached Santana's house and Brittany walked her up to the front door.

"All this talk of New York though, why are you so interested?" Santana asked, an eyebrow rose in expectation.

Brittany let go of the other girl's hand and clasped her own behind her back. She shrugged looking down. "I dunno, it's just going to be hard saying goodbye to you. I think I might actually die."

Santana looked like she took a moment to register the words. "Woah, woah, woah there Blondie, what? You think I'm going without you?"

Brittany's head snapped up as she looked into Santana's eyes. "You want me to come?" she asked, shocked for some reason.

"Well uh _yeah_ preferably" Santana said as if it were obvious. "Look the whole NYC thing was my original idea, but things change, I've got other priorities now"

"You have?" Brittany breathed as her heart missed a beat, or two.

"Well yeah," Santana shrugged bashfully, "I've got you to think of now, and I'd love if you came with us, there's loads of great dancing schools in the city…but…if you don't want to then I don't know, we'll think of something else"

"But haven't you and Rachel been planning this move for like years or something?"

"Well _yeah _but-"

"You'd really change your plans for me?" Brittany interjected.

Santana sighed and laughed a little. "I told you Britt, I'd do anything for you"

Her heart was beating so unevenly now that she thought she might have been having a stroke, either way she think she liked it.

"New York with you sounds perfect" Brittany breathed shakily and bounced on her feet in excitement.

"Yeah?" Santana smiled, the dimples on her cheeks deepening and the edge of her eyes smiling.

"Yup" Brittany nodded. She had never been so sure in all her life. She finally had something to look forward to; she had plans, not just any plans but plans with Santana.

"Well…" Santana said slowly, something sly in her tone. "There is a slight problem, fours a crowd huh? I mean you, me, Kurt and Rachel. That's a lot for one place"

"Oh, we'll manage somehow" Brittany grinned happily.

Santana's shoulders slumped as she looked a little disappointed for some reason, Brittany didn't get it.

"OK, well…I hope so, shacking up with two drama queens could be hellish. I mean we'll have to endure twinkle toes and Barbra Streisand the second and you just _know _those two are going to burst into renditions of whatever gay musical they went to see last, not to mention Rachel's like OCD, she freaks out over a speck of dust yet still has a dusty old vinyl player, I mean vinyl! Then there's Kurt, god I don't know him that well but I heard that guy try to hit a sharp F or high G or some shit and well, I thought someone was squeezing his balls, I always figured him and gellboy were kinky like that"

Brittany giggled, "Don't you need to talk to Rachel about all this first?"

Santana's mouth slowly formed a smirk. "Please, she's been nagging me for weeks to bring it up"

Brittany grinned. "Well, I'm glad she did. Anyways I should probably head back home"

"Sure you don't want to come in and heat up first?" Santana laughed.

"No, if I stay with you," she paused and tucked away a stray lock of hair that had fallen out of her hat. "I don't think I'll be able to leave"

Santana smiled looking pleased with her self and nodded. "OK, well, I'll see you tomorrow in school" she said, tapping her finger against the cold tip of Brittany's nose.

Brittany grinned and slowly walked backwards away from her, she wanted to look at Santana for as long as possible. Santana gave her a small wave before entering her house and closing the door behind her. Brittany marched off speedily wanting to get back home as soon as possible. She was really cold; she didn't really believe Santana when she said her boobs might fall off but it was so cold she cupped both her hands under them and carried them carefully home. She wasn't taking any chances.

The next day wasn't as cold as the previous, but still coming from further south Brittany wasn't used to it being this cold. She entered McKinley and headed toward her locker. Quinn was waiting for her there donning her winter cheerios outfit, a significantly more conservative combination of red pants with a thick jacket.

"What on earth are you wearing today Brittany?" Quinn said quirking an eyebrow at her.

Brittany looked down at her attire and frowned. She didn't see anything wrong. She was wearing cream woolen winter boots with black pants, a white tank top with matching woolly cream scarf, glove and hat combination, topped off with Santana's black leather jacket. She was dressed in all cream and black, didn't that go or something?

"You look like a sheep, it was so much easier being your friend when you were in cheerios, speaking of which, when are you coming back?"

"I'm just out of my crutches, probably not till the new year Quinn" Brittany said, getting books out of her locker.

Quinn sighed impatiently.

"Sorry, am I not healing fast enough for you or something?"

"I'm just fed up with you floating around Lopez all the time, when we could be hanging out more" Quinn said shrugging confrontationally.

Brittany narrowed her eyes. "Quinn…are…are you jealous or something? Cause you always go on about Santana, she's more than a friend to me and cause you two don't get along I have to go between you, and I don't think you appreciate how hard that is"

"How dare you, I am not jealous," Quinn hissed looking around nervously, coming forward in an aggressive stance. "I told you to never speak of what happened again. Look, Britt, I'll make this easy for you – me or her"

"Quinn I can't just-"

"Tell me when you've made your decision" Quinn said with finality and walked off.

Brittany just stood there stunned in silence. She didn't know how much longer she could take Quinn's erratic behavior. Something was going on with her and had been for a while now, but she didn't know what.

Come their afternoon free period it was too cold out to sit in their usual spot under the bleachers so they walked around the almost empty school corridors talking about anything and everything. Brittany's mind was still racing from what Quinn said to her earlier. She wanted to be Quinn's friend but if she really wanted Brittany to choose her over Santana then she was crazy. There was simply no choice. Feeling her heart swell a little Brittany stopped them just outside the cafeteria.

"Santana," she said firmly, splaying her hands out by her sides almost like she was preparing herself. "I need to tell you something, and _promise _me you won't get mad"

Santana's eyes immediately narrowed and looked at the blonde in suspicion. "OK," she said slowly, "Spill"

"That night a few weeks ago at the party at your house? You know, where I got too high on E and shouldn't have mixed up my meds?"

Santana giggled and shook her head, "you don't need to remind me Britt. It was hardly forgettable"

"Yeah well, after you kinda…freaked out…in the bathroom I felt sick and I went back to your room and Quinn came in and I was confused, I don't really remember most of it but she kissed me, and I kinda kissed her back for a second but then I stopped it cause my head hurt and everything was blurry and I told her about you and me and she didn't seem happy and-"

"Hold. The. Fuck. Up" Santana said firmly holding a finger up to silence her, a deep frown etched on her face.

Santana's left hand seemed to ball into a fist as her face turned paler.

Not good.

"You kissed Quinn?" she asked, sounding dumbfounded, hurt and angry all at the same time.

"For like a split second yeah," Brittany said quickly "but she knew I took the pill and she just kissed me outta nowhere so it was kinda like a natural reflex thing, I mean yeah her lips are super soft but that was about it, she isn't you and I didn't feel anything, actually I felt kinda like I was about to throw up, and I'm starting to feel the same way now" Brittany let out nervously.

She couldn't loose Santana over this, not over something stupid like this.

"_Hold up_," Santana said yet again, sounding even more frustrated and confused. "Quinn knew you were high as a kite and just _threw _herself at you? Did she try anything else with you? Fuck you weren't even wearing a top were you? You were half naked in MY bedroom and she just threw herself at you knowing you wouldn't understand or remember?" Santana exclaimed, her voice getting louder and louder. "I…I can't take this" Santana muttered, her chest heaving with rage. She brought a hand up and rubbed across her forehead. She suddenly stormed, walking briskly off in a speed Brittany had never seen from her before.

"Santana wait," Brittany started going after her, "where are you going?"

"To kill Quinn Fabray" she spat back over her shoulder.

Crap. Crap. Crap.

"Hey cheerio slut," Santana barked at girl by her locker and grabbed her by the arm "what class is Quinn Fabray in right now? And don't even think about lying to me cause I know you all know each others timetables"

"T-T-T-Trigonometry" the girl stuttered out looking petrified.

"Gracias, hoy se llega a vivir" Santana said and was off again in another direction.

"Santana wait! Don't do this!" Brittany called out to her and followed along behind her. She knew it was pointless, Santana was zoned out and there was no way to drag her out of it.

Brittany's stomach lurched with dread as they arrived at Quinn's class and Santana literally kicked the door open with her boot.

The whole class was talking and the teacher wasn't even here. Crap. Not good. Everyone went silent as they all jumped at their classroom door being practically barged down.

"YOU" Santana growled spotting Quinn in the middle of the class and the blonde had already jumped up in her seat, possibly to make a run for it.

Santana lurched forward grasped a single hand around Quinn's throat and slammed the girl with a thud into the classroom wall. Everyone just looked on with shock, even Brittany panicked not knowing what to do or say. There was no one around to help or stop it.

"S-Santan…ah…" Quinn gasped for air as Santana clasped her other hand around her throat and was lifting her up by the neck, cutting off her air supply. Quinn's arms and legs flailed about helplessly. Brittany ran forward to them and tried to get Santana away by putting a hand on her shoulder, but Santana shrugged it off as a mere inconvenience.

"Let's make one thing clear Quinn, I don't like you and you don't like me. Fine. I have no issue with that," Santana said, eerily calm considering she was all but slowly killing the girl in front of her. "But you ever throw yourself at Brittany again, or take advantage of her or manipulate her or hurt her ever again and I WILL not hesitate to end you, do I make myself clear?"

Quinn's neck and the sides of her face were turning red and purple, some of her veins popping out, she continued to gasp and clutch for air as the class watched in horror.

"I said, do I make myself clear?" Santana shouted at her.

"…Y-y-y-es…." Quinn all but gasped out.

"Good" Santana said flatly, withdrawing both hands and letting Quinn fall to the floor gasping and choking.

She spun around and strode out the classroom leaving murmurs behind her.

"Santana, that wasn't OK" Brittany called out to her as they rounded the corridor and into another one. "You could have…seriously hurt her…you were scaring me…" Brittany said, her voice shaking and tears tingeing her eyes.

Santana turned around and there was no longer anger swirling behind her eyes, she just looked lost and exhausted.

"I'm sorry Britt, I never meant to scare you," she said quietly. "I just want to protect you"

"You're not protecting me by attacking other people Santana" Brittany countered and walked up to her.

"I know," Santana cowered and looked down. "I don't know what came over me, I'm sorry…but…but I would have let her go, you were there, so I would have let her go, you know that right?" Santana said sounding anxious, her eyes pleading with desperation for Brittany to agree with her.

"Yes Santana, _I know,_" Brittany sighed exasperated, "but that's not the point, you shouldn't have done that. We can't be together if you're going to act like that. I want to be with you Santana, I want a future with you, but in order for that to happen you need to take care of yourself"

Santana swallowed thickly and her watery eyes looked at Brittany with shame.

"You said you'd do anything for me so prove it, you're going to start seeing Ms. Pillsbury and deal with all this pent up anger you seem to have. Your mom totally wanted it and now I want it. You said we were the two most important people in your life, so…how important? More important than your ego?"

Santana opened her mouth a few times then shut it; she looked so withdrawn and shocked. Brittany's heart swelled but she knew she couldn't just drop this.

"OK," Santana said quietly after a while.

"OK," Brittany breathed out in relief. "Meet me at the lockers after school OK? I'll walk you home, I'm not letting you go home and get stoned or drink yourself into oblivion over this"

Santana's eyes went wide as if Brittany had read her mind and nodded meekly.

"And you better hope nobody told a teacher what happened in that class too" Brittany added before heading away.

She sensed Santana needed to be alone right now and to be honest so did she, the adrenaline was still coursing through her veins. She couldn't concentrate in the rest of her classes for that day and she didn't even eat lunch, she sat staring into space replaying how angry and hurt Santana was. She never wanted to see the girl like that again, much less be the _cause _of that look.

As the last bell rang Brittany headed toward where she was meeting Santana.

Brittany leaned against the lockers looking at Santana considerately. The other girl looked tired as she rummaged through her locker for something.

"Haven't got a bottle hidden away back there have you?" Brittany smiled.

Santana slowly turned around, her brow creased in harassed confusion. She looked lost.

"Huh? Wha…uh…no" she mumbled, looking at Brittany with a vague look in her eyes, almost like she was looking right through her.

"Are you OK?" Brittany asked gently.

Santana seemed to snap out of it. "Yeah, I'm fine Britt, thanks for…well…everything…"

"That's what a partnership is about, isn't it?"

"P-partnership?" Santana stuttered uncertainly, looking around at student by passers. "We're not partners, or girlfriends, well not now…yet…or whatever"

Brittany laughed softly and shook her head in amusement.

"What?" Santana frowned.

"We've been partners for quite a while now Santana. A partnership is about helping each other, building each other's dreams and supporting each other, especially when they need it the most. You can lean on me whenever you want Santana, just like I know I can lean on you, although I need to be careful when leaning on you cause you're totally a lot smaller than me and probably can't take as much weight"

Santana's eyes glowed with affection as a small laugh escaped her lips. She looked down and shook her head possibly trying to conceal a blush.

"What's so funny?" Brittany cocked her head to the side, a smile plying her lips.

Santana let out a sigh and shook her head once more, brown eyes lifting uncertainly to meet blue. "You're adorable," Santana said quietly.

Brittany's smile faltered if only for a second because her heartbeat was in her throat and she felt it as she swallowed. Her smile turned into a toothy grin.

"Welll," she drawled out, bouncing on her feet a little. "Considering my moms like the anti-Christ or something I figure nature had to make me kinda adorable to balance things out"

Santana chuckled, a low delicious sound.

"So uhm," Brittany continued, tucking a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. "I guess I'll see you Monday?"

"Yeah, see you Monday" Santana sighed, almost sadly. "No, wait" she halted as the blonde made to turn around. "I know I've left this a while, and, well, I-I-I was uh, just…wondering…if you were still up for…you know…that date?" Santana asked shakily, tumbling over her own words. "I mean what I'm trying to say is that will you go out on a date with me? Although I actually have something specific in mind, it's perfect actually but we need to-"

Santana's words were quickly swallowed up by Brittany's mouth suddenly on hers, right in the middle of the school hallway.

She took Santana's lower lip between her own and sucked gently as she brought both her hands up and cupped Santana's face, leaning into her more that the other girl stumbled a bit. They both breathed out as they parted and Santana looked a little stunned. Brittany's heart had rose up and now felt like it was pounding inside her throat.

"Sorry," Brittany mumbled and looked around, the hallway wasn't crowded but there were people at the far end that were looking their way.

Santana's lips slowly formed a small smile. "Don't be," she said quietly.

Brittany's heart subsided with ease as she let out a relieved grin. "So uhm…it's Friday, we could go out on a date tonight, Benny's maybe?"

"Britt," Santana giggled with a sigh. "If you were actually listening to me when I was talking," she said in mock disappointment. "You would have heard that I've already planned our date, and we definitely can't go at night"

"Oh? Now I'm curious," Brittany said. "Where are you taking me? When are you taking me?"

Santana came forward and ran her fingertip down the front of her own jacket Brittany was wearing. The Latina chewed her bottom lip and looked up into blue eyes with mischief.

"We'll be gone all weekend, it's at least a two hour drive so, depending on traffic…" she trailed and grinned.

"We're taking…a road trip?" Brittany asked confused but delighted.

"Not as such, but the place I want to take you is practically on the other side of Ohio so, we'll be leaving tomorrow, and it depends, if I get tired driving we could stop off at a motel somewhere?" she said lowly, her eyes roaming across Brittany's chest then up over her eyes.

A clatter of a locker in the background distracted them both and they pulled apart, Brittany looked around to the source of the noise but nobody was there.

Brittany swallowed and nodded. "Where are we going though?" the blonde asked, her voice suddenly soft but uneven.

"It's a surprise"

"I love surprises," Brittany squealed clapping her hands together.

"And I love you" Santana said back simply.


End file.
